East Hampshire District Council’s Licensing Sub-Committee met to discuss an application for a new premises licence for the Fallen Oak, a new restaurant in Whitehill. They approved the application with some alterations to the proposed hours.

Fallen Oak Premises Licence

The meeting concerned an application for a new premises licence for the Fallen Oak restaurant in Whitehill.

The applicant, Mr Jones, was seeking permission to open from 8am until 11pm, seven days a week, and wished to be able to serve alcohol from 10am each day. He spoke in support of his application.

I’ve taken on board the concerns of local residents and I’m confident I can run the Fallen Oak without it having a detrimental impact on the area. I’ve agreed to join the local pub watch scheme and we’ll have at least two members of staff on duty at all times.

Three local residents also spoke at the meeting. They raised concerns about the impact of the restaurant on traffic, parking and noise.

One of the residents, Mr Smith, said that he was worried about people parking on the road outside his house if the restaurant’s car park was full:

We already have a lot of problems with parking on our road, particularly at weekends. I’m really concerned that this is going to make it even worse.

Councillors asked a number of questions about the application, focussing on what steps the applicant would take to address the concerns of local residents.

Councillor Richard Millard asked the applicant about the arrangements for dealing with noise from people leaving the restaurant late at night. Mr Jones explained:

We’re going to employ two security staff from FSS who will be responsible for managing the car park, and making sure that customers leave quietly. They will be on duty from 9pm every night.

The Sub-Committee approved the application for a licence, but decided to add a number of conditions, including a requirement that the premises close at 10pm on Sundays.