The Regulatory Licensing Committee of Wandsworth Council met on Tuesday 9th November 2010 to discuss proposals for street trading fees and a review of various licensing fees. The meeting's agenda included a review of street trading services and a broader review of fees for licences administered by the Director of Technical Services.

Review of Street Trading Services

The committee was scheduled to consider a report on street trading in the borough, which included proposals for the levels of fees and charges to be introduced from February 2011. The report detailed the current situation in various street markets, including Northcote Road Market in Southfields, London SW11, Hildreth Street Market in Balham, London SW12, and Battersea High Street Market in Battersea, London SW11.

Northcote Road Market was noted as being in high demand, with 22 active traders and a waiting list of 70 applicants, despite traders reporting a downturn in custom due to the economic climate. Hildreth Street Market had four traders operating on five pitches with three vacant, and Battersea High Street Market had five traders operating from six pitches with many vacant. The report also mentioned 29 traders operating from scattered sites across the borough.

The report outlined proposals to maintain the current basic street trading pitch fee and charge factors for the 2011/12 street trading year, which commences in February 2011. This decision was recommended to ensure the continuation of a healthy street trading element in the local economy. The Street Trading Account showed a forecast deficit of £24,000 for the current year, but a cumulative surplus of £29,000 was carried forward from previous years. The report suggested that the surplus would be used for service development activities and street trading site improvements, and that charges might need to be increased in 2012/13 to avoid the account falling into deficit.

The report also detailed the system for assessing charges, which varies according to factors such as advantageous location, days and hours of operation, production of litter and refuse, and size of pitch. These factors were proposed to remain unchanged.

Review of Fees for Licences

The committee was also scheduled to consider a joint report from the Directors of Finance and Technical Services regarding a review of charges and fees for licences administered by the Director of Technical Services. The report proposed an increase in fees generally by around 6%, with the full cost of processing and enforcement elements of any licence to be charged at the time of application. Where relevant, the proportion of the fee relating to enforcement would be refunded if an application was unsuccessful.

Specific proposals included increasing the fee for premises providing body piercing and tattooing to more accurately reflect the cost of licensing these premises. Additionally, with the transfer of responsibility for licensing laser treatments from the Care Quality Commission to Local Authorities in London from October 2010, it was proposed that these licences be charged at the same rate as tattooists and piercers due to their high-risk nature. The fee for issuing a certificate of surrender of unsound food and a certificate of export of food was also proposed to be increased to reflect full cost recovery.

The report noted that the EU Services Directive¹ required that any charges incurred by applicants for authorisation procedures should be reasonable and proportionate to the cost of those procedures, and not exceed them. The council's charging policy aims to recover the cost of services wherever possible, minimising direct subsidy from council taxpayers.