Licensing hearing procedures

Anyone, including a responsible authority, can make comments during the consultation period of a licence application. This is known as making a representation.

You can make a representation in support of or against an application. 

For example, you could object to your local pub extending its licensable hours late into the evening as it could lead to people congregating outside. Or you may support an extension as it could allow for the staggering of customers leaving the premises thereby avoiding potential problems. 

In both cases you must demonstrate the likely effect of granting, varying or continuing the premises licence or club premises certificate on one or more of the 4 licensing objectives.

How to make a representation

If you are concerned that the grant of a licence would affect any of the licensing objectives, you can make a representation:

1. Go to the public register, search for the application and click view details to view the full application.

2. Make your representation in writing using our form (recommended) or by letter:

   Document

   Representation in respect of a premises licence or club premises certificate application or variation (PDF, 205.09KB)
3. After we receive representations, we consider if they are valid and relevant. We will not consider any representations we consider to be:
   1. frivolous – lacking seriousness (a complaint must be serious and must relate to one or more of the licensing objectives)
   2. vexatious – arising because of a dispute between businesses,
4. If representations are valid and relevant, the matter will be referred to a licensing sub-committee hearing to consider, unless all parties come to an agreement beforehand.
5. We will write to you with the date, time and location of the hearing, send you a copy of our hearing procedures and provide you with details of where the agenda will be published on our website.
6. You need to give us at least 5 working days’ notice before the start of the hearing if you:
   1. will attend the meeting in person
   2. will be represented by someone else
   3. think a hearing is unnecessary
   4. want someone else to come with you to the hearing.

Points to note:

• public nuisance: a number of individuals would likely need to be affected for a representation to be valid
• health and safety: we will not duplicate restrictions that are already in place through separate legislation

If the applicant withdraws their application, we will write to you and let you know.

You must let us know as soon as possible if you want to withdraw your representation.

Hearings are public but any discussions on decisions are made in private.

Hearing decisions

At the hearing we may:

• decide to grant or vary the licence as applied for
• decide to refuse to issue or vary a licence
• decide to grant or vary the licence but to modify the conditions
• exclude a licensable activity from the licence
• refuse to specify a person as the premises supervisor