10 December 2013 - East Devon District Council

which means that they must not go further than what is needed for that purpose.
Licensing authorities should only impose conditions which are appropriate and
proportionate for the promotion for the licensing objectives. If other existing law
already places certain statutory responsibilities on an employer or operator of
premises, it cannot be appropriate to impose the same or similar duties.
6. Observations
6.1 Following the implementation of the first set of regulations under the Police Reform
and Social Responsibility Act on 25 April 2012 a new provision relating to the ‘test’
that Licensing Committees should consider when deciding on licensing applications
was introduced. The evidential level for Licensing Committees has been lowered so
that the test now is that their decisions need only be ‘appropriate’ and no longer
‘necessary’.
6.2 The application being considered is to extend the licensed area inside the premises
to include a previous store area and to install double doors leading to a small railed
patio area at the front of the building. To amend condition 11 of Annexe 2 of the
licence to add the wording ‘with the exception of the designated patio area’ and
condition 29 to read ‘to be able to use the outside patio area until midnight’.
6.3 Representations from Mr & Mrs Guyard-Mulkerrin and Exmouth Town Council
express concerns about the management of the premises and that if the variation is
granted then customers will spill out onto Tower Street which is a narrow road to the
front of the premises causing a hazard to traffic and causing a public nuisance to
children and families using nearby facilities. There are concerns that there will be
increased anti-social behaviour because of ‘cheap drinks deals’ and increased noise
and inconvenience caused to nearby residents and businesses particularly from the
use of the outside patio area.
6.4 The applicant has included a small railed off patio area at the front of the premises
for use as a smoking area to prevent customers spilling into the narrow road at the
front of the premises. She has applied for this area to become part of the licensed
area so that if smokers take their drinks with them there will not be a breach of the
existing licence condition which reads ‘No customers will be permitted to take open
containers of alcoholic or soft drinks from the premises’. She has therefore also
applied to amend the wording of that condition to add ‘with the exception of the
designated patio area’.
6.5 During mediation the objectors agreed with the use of the patio area for smokers but
did not agree that drinking should be allowed there. The applicant was adamant that
she wanted the area licensed as she was concerned that if one of her customers
‘slipped out’ onto the patio with a drink in their hand she would be breaching her
licensing conditions.
6.6 The Sub Committee will now need to consider whether to grant this application as it
stands or in the light of the representations to refuse the
application or grant it in a different form.
6.7 A location plan is attached at Appendix F
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