The Cheltenham Borough Council Licensing Sub Committee-Alcohol and Gambling is scheduled to convene to discuss a new premises licence application. The application is for the Cheltenham Local store, and has attracted representations from both responsible authorities and interested parties. The committee will also elect a chair at the start of the meeting.

New Premises Licence Application: Cheltenham Local

The main item for discussion is a new premises licence application submitted by Gaba Ventures Ltd for the premises known as Cheltenham Local, located at 216-218 Hewlett Road, Cheltenham. The application, reference 25/01584/PRMA, seeks permission for the supply of alcohol every day from 00:00 to 23:59.

According to the report of the Licensing Officer, there is already an existing licence for the premises which allows the sale of alcohol from 06:00 to 23:00. The applicant intends to operate exclusively through a secure serving hatch between 23:00 and 07:00, meaning customers will not enter the store during these hours.

The Licensing Sub-Committee is required to consider the application in accordance with the Licensing Act 2003, and with regard to Cheltenham Borough Council's Statement of Licensing Policy. The committee must aim to promote the four licensing objectives:

• The prevention of crime and disorder
• Public safety
• The prevention of public nuisance
• The protection of children from harm

The report pack states that the sub-committee has several options:

• Grant the licence as applied for
• Grant the licence subject to modified conditions
• Exclude from the scope of the licence any of the licensable activities
• Refuse to specify a person in the licence as the premises supervisor
• Reject the application

Representations

The council has received representations from both responsible authorities and interested parties regarding the application.

Gloucestershire Constabulary has agreed a set of conditions with the applicant, detailed in Appendix 2 - Glos Constabulary conditions.

Environmental Health has submitted a representation, included as Appendix 3 - Environmental Health comments, expressing concerns about the use of the serving hatch during the proposed overnight hours. While not an objection, Environmental Health emphasises potential noise issues during the 23:00 to 07:00 timeframe, stating that:

...our concerns relate to noise from the use of the hatch during this timeframe overnight. The premises have rightly confirmed that they will not serve intoxicated customers and that they will also have challenge 25 in place, however a refusal to sell more alcohol to any intoxicated person is likely to give rise to noise and disturbance.

Eight representations were received from interested parties, comprising objections that highlight possible anti-social behaviour, noise concerns and public nuisance. These are attached as Appendix 4 - Public Comments.

The applicant's response to Environmental Health's queries is included as Appendix 5 - Applicant response to Environmental Health.

Policy Considerations

The report pack states that the Statement of Licensing Policy outlines the processes the authority will adopt in dealing with its functions under the LA2003, and does so in accordance with the following objectives:

• Promote the four licensing objectives
• Ensure that the premises are appropriate for their proposed use
• Ensure that the premises layout and condition is acceptable for the proposed use
• Ensure that the premises are being managed responsibly
• Promote the policy vision statement

The policy vision statement is:

We want Cheltenham to be a safe and clean town that offers a greater diversity in the nighttime economy that is less focused on alcohol and protects the quality of life for residents.

The report pack notes that the authority believes that licensable activities carried on within the core hours set out below will generally not have a harmful impact on the licensing objectives. The core hours for an off licence are 09:00 to 23:00.

Licensing Officer Comments

The Licensing Officer's comments in the report pack note that the main concerns raised in the representations relate to public noise and nuisance due to the extended opening hours. The report pack also notes that if the committee proposes to make a decision contrary to the existing policy they must give clear, relevant and justifiable reasons why.

Election of Chair

At the beginning of the meeting, the sub-committee will elect a chair from among its members: Councillor Dilys Barrell, Councillor Dr Steve Steinhardt, and Councillor Simon Wheeler. Councillor Dr David Willingham is also a member, and is available as a substitute if required.