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STATUTORY LICENSING SUB-COMMITTEE

 

Minutes of a meeting held on 18th June, 2018.

 

Present:  Councillors Mrs. P. Drake, K.P. Mahoney and Mrs. J.M. Norman.

 

Also present: Licensing Officer (Vale of Glamorgan Council), Environmental Health Officer (Vale of Glamorgan Council) and Legal Officer (Vale of Glamorgan Council).

 

The Scrutiny Support Officer explained the procedure to be used for the hearing and advised that copies were included within the agenda. 

 

 

(a)       Appointment of Chairman

 

Councillor K.P. Mahoney was elected Chairman for the duration of the hearing.

 

 

(b)       Declarations of Interest

 

No declarations were received.

 

 

(c)        Licensing Act 2003 – Application for the Grant of a Premises Licence – The Plug, 13a/15 Station Road, Dinas Powys, CF64 4DE

 

Also present; Mr. P. Lewis (Applicant), Mr. J. Lewis (Applicant’s Representative) Mr. A. Davidson (Other Persons) and Mrs. A.H. Davidson (Other Persons).     

 

The Chairman welcomed those present to the Sub-Committee hearing and invited each person to introduce themselves.  The Chairman invited the Licensing Officer to present the report, who advised that an application had been made under the Licensing Act 2003 for the Grant of a Premises Licence at The Plug, 13a/15 Station Road, Dinas Powys, CF64 4DE by Mr. Peter Lewis.

 

The application sought authorisation for the following licensable activities to be carried out at the premises:

 

Sale of alcohol, provision of live music and playing of recorded music from 08:00 hours to 23:00 hours seven days a week.

 

The Licensing Officer drew the Sub-Committee’s attention to page 8 of the application attached at Appendix A to the report, which included the provision for late night refreshment and confirmed that this section was not applicable as the requested hours were before that required for late night refreshment licences. 

 

Members were advised that since the Deregulation Act 2015, the provision of live and recorded music between the hours of 08:00 and 23:00 in premises licensed for the 'on sale' of alcohol, no longer required a licence.  Furthermore, the provision of music on relevant licensed premises between those hours could not be subject to licence conditions.

 

However, the Licensing Officer informed Members that if they resolved to refuse the application for the sale of alcohol, or reduce the hours during which alcohol could be sold, the application for Regulated Entertainment would need to be considered separately.

 

The Authority had received four relevant representations during the consultation period.  On 18th May, 2018 representations were received from the Shared Regulatory Services Environmental Health Team.  A copy of the representations was attached at Appendix B to the report.  Three representations were received from Other Persons during the consultation period and copies of these were attached at Appendix C to the report.

 

The Authority was only empowered to consider relevant representations as defined in Section 18 (6) of the Licensing Act 2003 that was "representations which are about the likely effect of the grant of the premises licence on the promotion of the licensing objectives" which were not deemed frivolous or vexatious.  For this reason some sections of the representations had been redacted.

 

The Officer stated that the full operating schedule and plan relating to the application were attached at Appendix D to the report.

 

The Chairman invited the Applicants to present their representations in support of their application. 

 

The Applicant, Mr. P. Lewis, informed the Sub-Committee that his coffee shop had been open for three and a half years.  The Applicant stated that he had received many requests to extend the opening hours of the premises and he was also hoping to expand the menu of what he could offer customers to include alcohol as business progressed into the evening.  The Applicant confirmed for the Committee that the plan of The Plug premises as detailed on page 16 of the Application attached at Appendix A to the report covered the floor plan for both 13a and 15 Station Road, Dinas Powys. 

 

A Member of the Sub-Committee queried with the Applicant if the licence for alcohol would be used to serve drinks with meals or on their own as an open bar.  In response, the Applicant stated that he would not be providing full meals from The Plug, however he envisaged that customers would be consuming alcohol with lighter meals and snacks on offer at the coffee shop.  The Applicant stated that the alcohol on offer would consist of draft beers and fine wines and his establishment was not one for binge drinking.  The Member queried if the granting of this licence would therefore change the type of business from a coffee shop to a wine bar.  Mr. P. Lewis indicated that this was not his intention, instead he was just seeking to apply for a flexible licence to cover a more varied menu and provide various events. 

 

It was clarified for the Licensing Sub-Committee that some concerns of Sub-Committee Members regarding use of the pavement area outside the building and operation of the business from 15 Station Road, Dinas Powys, were matters for highways and planning to consider respectively, and were therefore not a matter for consideration at the meeting. 

 

The Chairman noted that the granting of a licence for the provision of live and recorded music could cover many genres of music.  The Licensing Officer confirmed for the Sub-Committee that if they were minded to grant the Premises Licence for the “on sale” of alcohol, the ability to provide live and recorded music between the hours of 08:00 and 23:00 would automatically be granted.  Furthermore, the provision of music relevant to licenced premises between these hours could not be subject to licence conditions. 

 

The Chairman invited the Environmental Health Officer to present her representations.

 

Following on from the previous point raised by the Sub-Committee, the Environmental Health Officer stressed that if the licence for alcohol was granted, this would automatically allow the premises to play live and recorded music which the officer was concerned could create a public nuisance risk due to the poor sound insulation of the building, noise breakout from open doors and windows, and the lack of smoking area.  A Member of the Sub-Committee queried if drinks could be taken outside the property, to which the Applicant responded that all drinks bought from the coffee shop could only be consumed on site and not taken outside.  The Sub-Committee also received views from the Applicant’s Representative and the Other Persons present at the meeting with regard to the background noise levels in Dinas Powys.  It was also confirmed to the Sub-Committee that the premises did not have to have designated smoking areas as part of a licence.

 

The Chairman invited the Other Persons to present their representations.

 

Mr. A. Davidson and Mrs. A.H. Davidson presented their written representation on page 1 of Appendix C attached to the report, and were also present to represent the views of Mr. D. Nethercott and Ms. J. Nethercott who had also submitted written representations on page 5 of Appendix C attached to the report. 

 

Mr. A. Davidson informed the Sub-Committee that he and his wife had lived in Dinas Powys for almost 30 years and when Mr. P. Lewis started his business in 13a Station Road, Dinas Powys, he had met with the Davidsons as his neighbours and the Applicant had informed them that he would only be operating a coffee shop from the site.  Mr. Davidson also stated that he had let Mr. Lewis onto his property to work on the flat room.  However, in more recent times, Mr. Davidson stated that Mr. P. Lewis had operated his business with little consideration to neighbours, for example, operating a barbeque outside the premises without informing his neighbours despite the smoke pollution which then affected their properties.  Mr. Davidson informed the Sub-Committee that he had received no notification from the Applicant with regards to the application for a Premises Licence and only knew about it when he saw the statutory notifications on a lamp post. 

 

In conclusion, Mr. Davidson informed the Sub-Committee that he was 80 years old and his wife 76, she also suffered from mental health concerns and they would both struggle with the additional noise disturbance at their next door property.  Mrs. A.H. Davidson informed the Sub-Committee that smokers from The Plug premises were congregating outside of their house, which was not a problem during the day but a significant issue during the evening. 

 

The Chairman provided all parties with the opportunity to sum up or add to their representations. 

 

With regards to the concerns raised about playing music at The Plug, the Applicant stated that his premises was not a place for performing or listening to loud music, instead he only sought to provide incidental background music that could be talked over by customers. 

 

The Other Persons present at the Licensing Sub-Committee meeting informed the Sub-Committee that they could hear music emanating from the site currently, however they had not complained as it could only be heard during the day. 

 

The Sub-Committee then discussed noise complaint procedures and the regulations for alcohol licences with regards to providing music and any mitigating conditions.  The Sub-Committee also discussed the fabric of the property and its sound insulation materials and properties. 

 

Subsequently, the Licensing Sub-Committee retired to consider the application in private. 

 

On returning, the Chairman confirmed the application was for the grant of a Premises Licence at The Plug, 13a/15 Station Road, Dinas Powys, CF64 4DE.  The application was for the sale of alcohol and regulated entertainment between 08:00 hours and 23:00 hours.

 

In delivering the decision of the Sub-Committee, the Chairman summarised the representations presented by all parties at the hearing:

 

Licensing Authority

 

The Licensing Authority had no further representations to make other than those already contained within the officer’s report.

 

Applicant

 

The Applicant advised the Sub-Committee that he had been operating the premises for three and a half years and before Christmas they had extended to the property next door.  The application had been made due to Mr. P. Lewis’ interest in operating his business further into the evening with a desire to serve a glass of wine or bottle of beer to customers as custom progressed throughout the day. 

 

Environmental Health

 

The Environmental Health Officer commented that by granting the licence for alcohol, by default the licence for live and recorded music would automatically be granted and could provide the potential for music to be played at the site for seven days a week from 08:00 hours to 23:00 hours.  It was the conclusion of the Environmental Health Officer that flat roof constructed properties offered poor sound insulation and there was a high risk of noise emanating from the premises which could have a negative effect on the occupants of nearby properties and the general residential amenity of the area due to the elevated noise levels. 

 

Other Persons

 

Three representations were received from Other Persons during the consultation period and were attached to the application papers, and Mr. and Mrs. Davidson were present to support their representations.  Mr. Davidson, in essence, indicated that he had been a good neighbour to the Applicant and allowed Mr. P. Lewis access from his neighbouring property to carry out building work on 13a Station Road.  A barbeque grill had been operated from the pavement next to both properties by Mr. P. Lewis without Mr. and Mrs. Davidson being informed and the Sub-Committee noted the ages and mental health concerns of the Other Persons.  The Sub-Committee also noted that music from The Plug could be heard in the Davidson’s home currently. 

 

The Chairman advised that following consideration of the application, the representations from Other Persons, the Local Authority’s Environmental Health Department, and having considered the Home Office Guidance along with the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy and also taking into account the Licensing Act 2003 (as amended), the Licensing Objectives, the Licensing Sub-Committee

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the application be granted and conditions modified that were consistent with the operating schedule in a way that it was considered appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives.  Those conditions would include the following: 

  • A condition that alcohol be not consumed outside the premises that had been purchased from within the premises.

Reason for decision

 

The Licensing Sub-Committee, in granting the application, were mindful that the ability to play music as outlined followed with the application.  If this should cause a nuisance by its operation or any other associated use of the premises, the matter should be referred to Environmental Health who could bring about a review of the licence.  Members wished to remind the Applicant of the importance of complying with all regimes in this particular case, including obligations under any planning conditions. 

 

The Sub-Committee was advised that the Applicant had a right of appeal against the decision of the Sub-Committee.  This had to be made in writing within 21 days to the Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan Magistrates Court.  Should the Applicant be in any doubt as to their legal rights and social responsibilities they should take independent legal advice. 

 

 

(d)       Licensing Act 2003 Application for the Grant of a Premises Licence – Coedarhydyglyn, St. Nicholas, CF5 6SF

 

Also present: Mr. S. Griffiths (Applicant), Team Leader, Environmental Health Officer (Vale of Glamorgan Council) and Police Constable J. Young (South Wales Police).

 

The Chairman invited the Licensing Officer to present the report, which advised that an application had been made under the Licensing Act 2003 for the grant of a Premises Licence at Coedarhydyglyn, St. Nicholas, CF5 6SF by DAISI Ltd. 

 

The application sought authorisation for the following licensable activities to be carried out between 27th to 30th July, 2018 in the form of a time limited period premises licence:

 

Hours premises are open to the public:

Friday to Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

 

Sale by retail of Alcohol

Friday to Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 02.00 hours

 

Live Music

Friday – 16:00 hours to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

Saturday and Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

 

Recorded Music

Saturday and Sunday – 14.00 hours to 02:00 hours

 

Late Night Refreshment

Friday to Sunday – 23:00 hours to 02:00 hours.

 

The Applicant was asked by the Licensing Officer to clarify why the application stated that the opening hours of the premises terminated earlier that the timings of the proposed licensable activities.  The Licensing Officer informed the Sub-Committee that a highly detailed operating schedule was attached at Appendix A to the report under Section M, which was detailed on page 9 onwards.  The Licensing Officer indicated that the Authority was seeking additional information which was referred to in Section M of the application, including a number of plans of the site and also the names of listed personnel. 

 

Under The Licensing Act 2003 (Premises and Club Premises Certificates) Regulations 2005 a Responsible Authority, or any other person, may make relevant representations at any time during the 28 day consultation period.

 

The Authority had received two relevant representations from Responsible Authorities during the consultation period.

 

On 25th April, 2018 the Council was advised by South Wales Police that following contact with the Applicant the addition of two conditions to the Operating Schedule had been agreed.  The conditions referred to were as follows: 

  • Two Police Officers would be present on site between 16:00 hours and 22:00 hours both on the Saturday and Sunday.  These Officers would be paid for in full by the organisers of the event;
  • A maximum of 4,500 persons would be permitted to attend the event on each day.  The total number of pre-sales made for each day would be made available to entrance staff who would then make sure day ticket sales did NOT take this number over 4,500 on any given day.  Clickers would be used by the entrance staff to monitor numbers on each day.

On 14th May, 2018 further representations were received from South Wales Police.  A copy of the representations was attached at Appendix B to the report.

 

On 22nd May, 2018 representations were received from the Shared Regulatory Services Environmental Health Team.  A copy of the representations was attached at Appendix C to the report.

 

The Chairman invited the Applicant to present their representations in support of their application.

 

The Applicant provided the Licensing Sub-Committee with a brief overview of the event and noted that there were concerns about the application by South Wales Police and Environmental Health.  Regarding the concerns by South Wales Police, the Applicant stated that he had been working with Police Constable Young, the Licensing Officer from South Wales Police, and had taken many of his recommendations on board. For example, the application for a licence now included the requested condition that two Police Officers would be present on the site between 16:00 hours and 22:00 hours both on the Saturday and the Sunday.  With regards to the concerns by the Environmental Health Department, the Applicant stated that he had received their request to finish playing recorded and live music at 23:00 hours at the latest, however he would prefer this to be extended until 00:00 hours (midnight).  To mitigate any concerns about noise, the Applicant had commissioned a noise management plan and suggested a compromise; that the event should consist of live and recorded music until 23:00 hours which would then be reduced from the hours of 23:00 hours until 00:00 hours (midnight), then finally be reduced to “inaudible” until 02:00 hours.  The Applicant confirmed that all other statutory consultees, including members of the public, had been notified of the application and he was not aware of any other objections. 

 

A Member of the Licensing Sub-Committee sought clarification on the numbers provided in the application, which would allow up to 4,999 people on the site at one time and asked if this figure was likely to be reached.  In response, the Applicant stated that he anticipated approximately 2,000 people to visit the site, however, as part of the application he would take the necessary precautions to ensure that this figure was not exceeded.  The Chairman of the Sub-Committee noted that on the second page of the representation from South Wales Police attached at Appendix B to the report, Police Constable Young had requested that the ratio of trained SIA staff to visitors on site should be 1:150, however in the application the Applicant had stated that he would employ one security personnel for every 200 people on site and queried if this was enough.  In response, the Applicant stated that he would be happy to use the ratio of 1:150 as suggested by the Police.  The Applicant then clarified the security and staffing arrangements for the festival, including the companies he was intending to employ to ensure there was adequate security cover at all times. 

 

The Chairman drew to the Licensing Sub-Committee’s attention the plan of the site detailed on page 40 of the application attached at Appendix A to the report and requested that the Applicant clarify a few points, as no key had been provided and not all markings were detailed in the operating schedule.  The Applicant confirmed for the Sub-Committee that Vehicle Access 2 as listed on the map was the entrance to the public car park and had a designated turning lane, Vehicle Access 1 was the exit of the public car park at which cars had to turn left, Vehicle Access 3 on the map was for emergency vehicles and crew only, and finally, Vehicle Access 4 was the designated exit for emergency vehicles and crew.  The Applicant then clarified for the Sub-Committee the road and camp site layout and the traffic flow throughout the site.  The Applicant confirmed that the field detailed on the top left hand side of the map labelled “NG8424 4.03” was no longer being used. 

 

In response to a question from the Licensing Officer, the Applicant confirmed that the hours the premises would be open to the public were as follows:

 

            Friday             12:00 hours (midday) opening time with no access after 21:00 hours.  Campers would then be on site all weekend and for the remainder of the public,

 

            Saturday        the site would be open from 10:00 hours until 21:00 hours with

            and                 people permitted to leave the site from 21:00 hours until

            Sunday          00:00 hours (midnight)

 

The Licensing Officer then clarified certain points in the operating schedule detailed in Section M of the application attached at Appendix A to the report with regards to the event plans and list of personnel roles which related to the overall event management, rather than specific licensing objectives. 

 

The Environmental Officer stated that in the most recent application she had not received the referred to noise management plan which made it difficult to comment on any noise concerns with the licence.  The Applicant stated that he had only recently changed event management company and had only received the updated Environmental Noise Report in the last week.  With the permission of the Chairman, the Applicant tabled the updated document. 

 

The meeting was then briefly adjourned to allow the Environmental Health Department to consider this new information and question the Applicant on any outstanding concerns.

 

Once the Sub-Committee had reconvened, the Chairman invited the South Wales Police Officer to present his representations. 

 

Police Constable Young advised the Sub-Committee of his main concerns, which were detailed in Appendix B attached to the report.  These were: 

  • In addition to fully trained and accredited SIA staff, Marshalls would also be used for any traffic control and entry and exit points were necessary;
  • Stewards should be on duty at the event to steward the car park and licence perimeter and would be readily identifiable to the public;
  • No Steward / Attendant should be engaged in any duty that would otherwise prevent him carrying out his duty as a Steward / Attendant or exercising general supervision and control of persons attending the Premises;
  • Any food and refreshments provided for consumption on site should not be provided in glass containers;
  • Trained SIA staff would be used to a ratio of 1:150;
  • A maximum of 4,500 persons would be permitted to attend the event on each day.  The total number of pre-sales made for each day would be made available to entrance staff who would then make sure ticket sales did NOT take this number over 4,500 on any given day.  Clickers would be used by the entrance staff to monitor numbers on each day;
  • Two Police Officers would be present on site between 16:00 hours and 22:00 hours both on the Saturday and Sunday.  These Officers would be paid for in full by the organisers of the event, because of the pressures facing South Wales Police on the weekend of 28th and 29th July, 2018 as this was also when their presence would be required at Glastonbarry in Barry. 

The Applicant stated that he accepted the recommendations of South Wales Police as conditions to be added to the licence.  It was confirmed for the Sub-Committee that the figure of 4,500 persons to be permitted to attend the event on each day included both visitors and staff and performers working at the site.  Police Constable Young also informed the Sub-Committee that the recommendations of South Wales Police were based on Glastonbarry, which had similar requirements. 

 

The Chairman invited the Environmental Health Officers to present their representations. 

 

The Environmental Health Officer stated that this festival had been presented to the Events Advisory Group and various questions were raised about the application for the licence, for example whether a first aid company had been contracted for the festival, and time was running out.  The Environmental Health Officer confirmed the request that the performing of live / recorded music should finish at 23:00 hours and the new event company, Beacon Events, had requested a gradated finish time.  The Chairman of the Licensing Sub-Committee queried why 23:00 hours had been recommended, and in response the Environmental Health Officer stated that this time was in line with the Code of Practice on Environmental Noise Control at Concerts which had been referenced in the Sound Consultant Report.  The Sub-Committee was also informed that 23:00 hours was considered the start of night hours. 

 

The Team Leader, Environmental Health welcomed the fact that the Applicant had provided a copy of the Noise Risk Assessment, however the main concerns of the Environmental Health Department remained, which were the hours of operation for the licence.  As it stood, the licence permitted 40 hours of live or recorded music to be played across only three days.  In her opinion, the Team Manager, Environmental Health, felt that other population areas within the vicinity of Coedarhydyglyn would be affected by the noise emanating from the site.  The Officer informed the Licensing Sub-Committee that the “inaudible” sound level as stated in the Environmental Noise Management Plan was a subjective figure which was difficult to adhere to, especially in the countryside where after 23:00 hours the background noise level would be low, approximately 20 decibels. 

 

A discussion then took place with regards to the potential requirement for a contracted medical team as a part of the licence and if this was a responsibility of the Local Authority under Primary Legislation.  The Applicant clarified for the Sub-Committee that the application consisted of three live music stages and one recorded music stage, and these should be labelled on the plan of the site detailed on page 40 of the application attached at Appendix A to the report as: Letter E for the main stage, letter D for a second stage, letter F for the marquee and letter C for the recorded music stage.  Following a query from the Chairman, the Licensing Officer informed the Sub-Committee that the applied for licence was time limited and only applicable for one year.  She also confirmed that the licence was for the sale of alcohol until 02:00 hours, however no representations had been received with regards to that specific section of the licence. 

 

The Chairman provided all parties with the opportunity to sum up or add to their representations.  The Team Manager for the Environmental Health Department informed the Sub-Committee that it would not be possible to condition against sound that was considered “inaudible” as there were no specific decibel readings that could measure this subjective figure, and the Applicant stated that he would not let the event run without a medical team being contracted. 

 

Subsequently, the Licensing Sub-Committee retired to consider the application in private.

 

On returning, the Chairman confirmed that the application was for the grant of a Premises Licence at Coedarhydyglyn, St. Nicholas, CF5 6SF.  The application was for the following licensable activities to be carried out between 27th to 30th July, 2018 in the form of a Time Limited Period Premises Licence:

 

Hours premises are open to the public:

Friday to Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

 

 

Sale by retail of Alcohol

Friday to Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 02.00 hours

 

Live Music

Friday – 16:00 hours to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

Saturday and Sunday – 12:00 hours (Midday) to 00:00 hours (Midnight)

 

Recorded Music

Saturday and Sunday – 14.00 hours to 02:00 hours

 

Late Night Refreshment

Friday to Sunday – 23:00 hours to 02:00 hours.

 

In delivering the decision of the Sub-Committee, the Chairman summarised the representations presented by all parties at the hearing:

 

Licensing Authority

 

The Licensing Authority had no further representations to make other than those already contained within the Officers’ report and the clarification sought from the Applicant on timing matters. 

 

Applicant

 

In the main, the Applicant’s representations were detailed within the report.  He provided clarification on the requested timings of the licence and detailed the plan of the site.  The Applicant accepted the recommendations of South Wales Police and in response to concerns from Environmental Health proposed a gradated reduction in sound levels from 23:00 hours until 02:00 hours.  

 

South Wales Police Authority

 

Police Constable Young set out conditions to be included in relation to Appendix B attached to the report which were agreed by the Applicant.  He clarified that the figure of 4,500 was to include the total number of persons on site at any one time. 

 

Environmental Health

 

An adjournment was granted for the Applicant to submit and discuss with Environmental Health a report from Beacon Events.  Whilst the officers indicated that an earlier presentation of the report would have assisted them, their view did not change in relation to the terminal hour that all music should stop, which was deemed in accordance with the Code of Practice on Environmental Noise Control at Concerts, which was 23:00 hours.  Finally, Environmental Health Officers stated that the topography of the area was described as likely to affect other residential premises in the area, including St. Georges and The Drope. 

 

The Chairman advised that following consideration of the application, the representations from South Wales Police, the Local Authority’s Environmental Health Department, and having considered the Home Office Guidance along with the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy and also taking into account the Licensing Act 2003 (As Amended), the Licensing Objectives, the Licensing Sub-Committee

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the application be granted and conditions modified that were consistent with the operating schedule in a way that it was considered appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives.  Those conditions would include the following: 

  • All music, including recorded and live music, must cease at 23:00 hours each evening.

Reason for decision

 

The Licensing Sub-Committee, in granting the application, had considered the application along with all those who had made both written and oral submissions.  The Licensing Sub-Committee had taken into account the Licensing Act 2003 (As Amended), in particular the licensing objectives and the Home Office Guidance along with the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy. 

 

The Licensing Sub-Committee advised the Applicant that he had a right of appeal against the decision of the Sub-Committee.  This had to be made in writing within 21 days to the Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan Magistrates Court.  Should the Applicant be in any doubt as to their legal rights and social responsibilities they should take independent legal advice.