This meeting was about deciding whether to grant three new premises licences under the Licensing Act 2003¹. The meeting was scheduled to hear about three applications, for Kebhouze at 159 Oxford Street, Daylesford Organic at 44 Pimlico Road, and Kasa Cafe at 150 New Cavendish Street. It is important to note that this article only describes what was scheduled to be discussed in the reports pack, and does not describe what was actually discussed or any decisions that were made at the meeting.

Kebhouze, 159 Oxford Street, London, W1D 2JL

This was an application for a new premises licence for Kebhouze, a kebab restaurant at 159 Oxford Street. The applicant, Kebhouze Ltd, requested permission to sell alcohol for consumption on the premises from 10:00 to 23:00, Monday to Sunday. They also requested permission to provide late night refreshment² from 23:00 to 23:30 from Thursday to Saturday.

The Metropolitan Police Service initially objected to the application, citing concerns about the hours of operation and the restaurant's location in the West End Cumulative Impact Zone.

The Police feel that due to the location of this venue and the hours sought, this venue will add to the cumulative impact in an already demanding area.

The applicant then agreed to a number of conditions proposed by the Metropolitan Police Service, including limiting the sale of alcohol to customers who are seated and having a substantial meal, serving all alcoholic drinks in non-glass containers, and implementing a Challenge 21 policy. They also agreed to reduce the requested hours for late night refreshment, bringing them in line with the core hours set out in the City of Westminster's Statement of Licensing Policy. The Metropolitan Police Service subsequently withdrew their objection to the application.

The Environmental Health Service raised concerns about the potential for public nuisance and public safety issues and requested that the applicant contact them to discuss these concerns further. They also proposed a number of conditions, including limiting the number of people permitted on the premises to 96 and prohibiting deliveries between 23:00 and 08:00 the following day.

The Licensing Authority also raised concerns about the potential for the restaurant to add to the cumulative impact in the West End and requested further information from the applicant about how they would mitigate this.

The Soho Society, a local residents' group, objected to the application on the grounds that it was contrary to the Fast Food Policy FFP1 and would increase crime and disorder, noise nuisance, and cumulative impact in the area. They expressed concern that:

People consuming food on the streets and those seated in the premises (current capacity 100) consuming alcohol late into the night will increase crime and disorder, cause noise nuisance to residents as patrons make their way home and increase cumulative impact.

Daylesford Organic, 44 Pimlico Road, London, SW1W 8LP

This was an application to vary the premises licence for Daylesford Organic, an organic shop and cafe at 44 Pimlico Road. The applicant, Daylesford Organic Limited, proposed changes to the layout of the premises, including:

• Reconfiguration of the back of house
• Creation of new office space
• Reduction in size of sales area
• Reconfiguration of sales area within existing licensed footprint
• Relocation of servery on the ground floor
• Reconfiguration of sales area and relocation of counter on the first floor.

The applicant also requested the removal of two conditions from their existing licence: a condition prohibiting self-service of spirits and a condition restricting the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises to the ground floor.

The Environmental Health Service raised concerns that the proposed changes could undermine the licensing objectives of Prevention of Public Nuisance and Public Safety and requested a site visit to discuss these concerns.

One member of the public objected to the proposed changes, citing concerns about noise from the premises, including:

Daylesford's noises due to their shop and the food & drinking serving activity on the first floor are already impactful, every single day, from Monday to Sunday, until late at night.

They expressed particular concern about the removal of the condition restricting the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises to the ground floor, arguing that this would lead to increased noise levels from the first floor of the premises.

Kasa Cafe, 150 New Cavendish Street, London, W1W 6YJ

This was an application for a new premises licence for Kasa Cafe at 150 New Cavendish Street. The report pack for this application consisted of the application form and supporting documents, which did not include any representations from responsible authorities or members of the public. The application requested permission for the sale of alcohol for consumption both on and off the premises, from 11:00 to 23:30 Sunday to Thursday, and from 11:00 to 00:30 Friday to Saturday.