Agenda and draft minutes

The Committee is asked to note any apologies for absence and substitutions received from Members.

An apology for absence was submitted on behalf of Councillor Skeels (with no substitute).

To confirm and sign as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Committee, held on Wednesday, 24 July 2024.

It was moved by Councillor Davidson, seconded by Councillor A Cossens and:-

RESOLVED that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Committee, held on Wednesday, 24 July 2024 be approved as a correct record and be signed by the Chairman.

Councillors are invited to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests, Other Registerable Interests of Non-Registerable Interests, and the nature of it, in relation to any item on the agenda.

Councillor Smith declared for the public record that he was a London Taxi driver but that he had no ties in that capacity to the District of Tendring.

Subject to providing two working days’ notice, a Member of the Committee may ask the Chairman of the Committee a question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties which affect the Tendring District and which falls within the terms of reference of the Committee.

On this occasion no Councillor had submitted notice of a question pursuant to Council Procedure Rule 38.

The Committee will formally receive and note, for its information only, the minutes of the meeting of the Miscellaneous Licensing Sub-Committee held on Tuesday, 9 July 2024.

It was moved by Councillor Wiggins, seconded by Councillor A Cossens and:-

RESOLVED that the Committee formally received and noted, for its information only, the Minutes of the meeting of the Miscellaneous Licensing Sub-Committee held on Tuesday, 9 July 2024.

The Committee will formally receive and note, for its information only, the minutes of the Premises/Personal Licences Sub-Committee meetings held on Monday, 17 June 2024, Wednesday, 31 July 2024, Monday, 2 September 2024 and Monday, 9 September 2024.

It was moved by Councillor Smith, seconded by Councillor A Cossens and:-

RESOLVED that the Committee formally received and noted, for its information only, the Minutes of the meetings of the Premises/Personal Licences Sub-Committee held on Monday 17 June, Wednesday 31 July, Monday 2 September and Monday 9 September 2024.

This report is submitted to the Committee to enable it to consider the revised Licensing Enforcement and Inspection Policy following a 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy. This report sets out the proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation.

Further to Minute 8 (24.7.24), the Committee considered the revised Licensing Enforcement and Inspection Policy following a 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy.  The report (A.1) set out both the proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the public consultation which had been conducted for a period of 5 weeks from 30 July 2024 to 3 September 2024.

The Committee was reminded that the draft revised Licensing Enforcement and Inspection Policy, as set out at Appendix A to the report (A.1), was intended to support the following themes from the Council’s Corporate Plan 2024-28:- 

·      Pride in our area and services to residents

·      Working with Partners to improve quality of life

·      Promoting our Heritage offer, attracting visitors and encouraging them to stay longer

·      Financial sustainability and openness

Members were advised that, in exercising the express powers of the Council as Licensing Authority under the Licensing Act 2003 it must do so with a view to promoting the licensing objectives defined in that Act, as follows:-

·      The prevention of crime and disorder;

·      Public Safety;

·      The prevention of public nuisance;

·      The protection of children from harm.

Additionally, in respect of the express powers under the Gambling Act 2005, the Licensing Authority must carry out those functions with a view to aiming to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as the Authority thought it was, inter alia, reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives defined in that Act, as follows:-

·      Preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime;

·      Ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way; and

·      Protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

It was reported that, in addition to a page created for the consultation on the Council’s website and a public notice displayed outside of the front of the Town Hall and the Council’s Offices at Pier Avenue, Clacton on Sea., the below had been written to inviting them to comment on the draft policy:-

•    All Tendring District Councillors

•    All Parish Councils

•    Responsible Authorities as defined in the Licensing Act 2003 (including Essex Police)

•    Institute of Licensing

•    A number of licensing solicitors

•    A range of licence holders of local premises licence (including pubs, off-licences, night time economy, street traders, gambling premises and taxis)

In addition to those consultation letters the Licensing Team had also visited a number of licence holders within the District handing out consultation postcards to encourage the trader to voice their opinions.

The Committee was made aware that two members of the public had sent in responses to the consultation.  Their comments were as follows:-

•    “The policy itself is fine - but without effective enforcement it is just empty words. In my experience, TDC's enforcement, whether in relation to illegal traders or bylaws is woeful. Unless your enforcement capability is seriously improved, no amount of policy wording will make any  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

This report is submitted to the Committee to enable it to consider recommending to Cabinet a revised Sex Establishment Policy following a 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy. This report sets out the revised proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation.

Further to Minute 9 (24.7.24), the Committee considered recommending to Cabinet a revised Sex Establishment Policy following a 5-week period of public consultation on a draft revised policy.  The report (A.2) set out both the revised proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation which had been conducted from 30 July 2024 to 3 September 2024. The draft policy, as set out at Appendix A to the report (A.2), was intended to support the following themes from the Council’s Corporate Plan 2024-28: 

·      Pride in our area and services to residents

·      Working with Partners to improve quality of life

It was reported that, in addition to a page created for the consultation on the Council’s website and a public notice was displayed outside of the front of the Town Hall and the Council’s Offices at Pier Avenue, Clacton on Sea, the below had been written to inviting them to comment on the draft policy:-

·      Licensed Sex Establishment Premises

·      All Tendring District Councillors

·      All Parish Councils

·      Responsible Authorities (including Essex Police)

·      Institute of Licensing

·      A number of licensing solicitors

·      A range of licence holders of local premises licence (including pubs, off-licences, night time economy, street traders, gambling premises and taxis)

In addition to those consultation letters the Licensing Team had also visited a number of licence holders within the District handing out consultation postcards to bring the consultation to the attention of the trader and to invite them to voice their opinions.

Members were made aware that one member of the public had sent in a response to the consultation.  Their comments were as follows:-

“Although, there are only one such premises within the locality it is essential that the policy framework exists to ensure should there be an increase in such venues wishing to establish themselves that the local authority has the tools available to ensure adherence to their rules and to maintain the King's peace without causing intentional outrages of public decency. On the other hand, there must also be provision made to ensure the welfare of those employed in these premises to protect them from any abuses from employers due to the taboo nature of sex establishments”. 

The Licensing Manager considered that the above response was a generalised comment that did not require any amendment to the Policy as presented.

The Committee was reminded that the current policy on licensing Sex Establishments had been published in 2018 and that this Council currently had one licensed sex shop and this was located within Clacton-on-Sea.  There were no Sexual Cinemas or Sexual Entertainment Venues currently operating within the District.

Members were aware that since November 2005, the Licensing Act 2003 (the 2003 Act) had required a wide range of regulated entertainment to be licensed by the Council acting as the Licensing Authority. 

Members were familiar with the restrictions in the 2003 Act which meant that any representation against a premises licence could only be based on the four licensing objectives.  Whilst licences could be subject to the review  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

This report is submitted to the Committee to enable it to consider the revised Gambling Act 2005 Policy following a recent 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy. This report sets out the proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation.

Further to Minute 10 (24.7.24), the Committee considered the revised Statement of Policy (Gambling Act 2005) following a recent 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy.  The report (A.3) set out both the proposed policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation which had been conducted from 30 July 2024 to 3 September 2024.

The Committee recalled that the Council was required to review and renew its Statement of Gambling Policy every three years in accordance with Section 349 of the the Gambling Act 2005.  The review and renewal of the Policy was subject to public consultation and must be adopted by Full Council upon a recommendation from both the Licensing and Registration Committee and Cabinet.

Members were reminded that a Review had been last undertaken three years ago and that no significant issues had arisen through use of the current policy since that last review.  The proposed changes were considered minor and an internal consultation had been undertaken with the Council’s Corporate Enforcement Group through this review process.

The Committee was aware that then Government had introduced a Gambling White Paper in April 2023. Should the recently elected Government pursue those proposals it was likely that there would be changes to the Gambling Commission’s Guidance issued to Local Authorities, which in turn would have an impact on the Council’s Gambling Policy. This, therefore, could require a further “mid-term” review of the Gambling Policy. Regrettably, however, the Council was unable to extend the term of its existing Gambling Act policy and must review its existing policy within the statutory time period.

It was reported that, in addition to a page created for the consultation on the Council’s website and a public notice displayed outside of the front of the Town Hall and the Council’s Offices at Pier Avenue, Clacton on Sea, the below had been written to inviting them to comment on the draft Policy:-

·      All Tendring District Councillors

·      All Parish Councils

·      Responsible Authorities under the Gambling Act 2005 (including Essex Police)

·      Institute of Licensing

·      A number of licensing solicitors

·      A range of licence holders of local premises licence (including pubs, off-licences, night time economy, street traders, gambling premises and taxis)

In addition to the consultation letters, the Licensing Team had also visited a number of licence holders within the District handing out consultation postcards to bring the consultation to the attention of the trader to voice their opinions. One licensing solicitor (Gosschalks, acting on behalf of the Betting and Gaming Council) had sent in responses to the consultation.  Their comments were attached as Appendix B to the report (A.3). The Head of Democratic Services & Elections highlighted that Gosschalks had requested amendments to paragraphs 15.11 and 24.2 of the Policy and he asked Members to give consideration to those requests in making their decision.

The Committee was reminded that the Policy must be based on the three licensing objectives as set out in the Gambling Act 2005, which were;-

·      Preventing gambling from being a source of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

This report is submitted to the Committee to enable it to consider the Pavement Licensing Policy following a 5-week period of consultation on a draft revised policy. This report sets out the proposed revised policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation.

Further to Minute 11 (24.7.24), the Committee considered the Pavement Licensing Policy following a 5-week period of public consultation on a draft revised policy.  The report (A.4) set out both the proposed revised policy to be adopted and the outcome of the consultation which had been conducted from 30 July 2024 to 3 September 2024.

Members recognised that the Policy was required following the passing of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 which had come into force on Sunday 31 March 2024. The draft revised Policy, as set out at Appendix A to the report (A.4) was intended to support the following themes from the Council’s Corporate Plan 2024-28: 

•    Pride in our area and services to residents

•    Working with Partners to improve quality of life

•    Promoting our Heritage offer, attracting visitors and encouraging them to stay longer

It was reported that, in addition to a page created for the consultation on the Council’s website and a public notice displayed outside of the front of the Town Hall and the Council’s Offices at Pier Avenue, Clacton on Sea, the below had been written to inviting them to comment on the draft policy:-

·      All Tendring District Councillors

·      All Parish Councils

·      Responsible Authorities under the Licensing Act 2003 (including Essex Police)

·      Institute of Licensing

·      A number of licensing solicitors

·      A range of licence holders of local premises licence (including pubs, off-licences, night time economy, street traders, gambling premises and taxis)

In addition to the consultation letters the Licensing Team had also visited a number of licence holders within the District handing out consultation postcards to bring the consultation to the attention of the trader and to invite them to voice their opinions. As a result, 5 members of the public, 2 businesses, 1 Town Council and 1 Responsible Authority (ECC Highways) had sent in responses to the consultation. Their comments were set out in Appendix B to the report (A.4). The Head of Democratic Services & Elections drew the Committee’s attention to those comments and that several suggestions had been incorporated into the Policy, now presented.

The Committee was notified that, in preparing the report (A.4), due consideration had been given to the Council’s statutory Equality Duty to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations, as set out in Section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010.

The Licensing Authority also had had due regard to the public sector equality duty under the Equality Act 2010.  Under this duty, the Authority (in the exercise of its functions) must have due regard to the need to:-

·      eliminate any form of unlawful discrimination (including direct or indirect discrimination, harassment, victimisation, and any other conduct prohibited under the Act);

·      advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant characteristic and people who do not;

·      foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not.

Having acknowledged the new legislation that had come into force on 31 March 2024 that had made changes to the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

To enable the Committee to discuss fixing the date of its next meeting.

It was RESOLVED that the next meeting of the Committee would be held on Monday 20 January2025, commencing at 6.30 p.m.

The Committee is asked to consider passing the following resolutions:-

a)    “that under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Items 13 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A, as amended, of the Act.” and,

b)    “that under Regulation 14 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005 the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Item 14 on the grounds that the public interest in so doing outweighs the public interest in that part of the hearing taking place in public.”

It was moved by Councillor Wiggins, seconded by Councillor A Cossens and:-

RESOLVED that –

(a)   under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Item 13 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A, as amended, of the Act; and

(b)   under Regulation 14 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005 the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Agenda Item 14 on the grounds that the public interest in so doing outweighs the public interest in that part of the hearing taking place in public.

The Committee will formally receive and note, for its information only, the exempt minutes of the Miscellaneous Licensing Sub-Committee held on Tuesday, 9 July 2024.

It was moved by Councillor Wiggins, seconded by Councillor Smith and:-

RESOLVED that the exempt minutes of the meeting of the Miscellaneous Licensing Sub-Committee held on Tuesday, 9 July 2024 be formally received and noted.

The Committee will formally receive and note, for its information only, the exempt minutes of the meeting of the Premises/Personal Licences Sub-Committee held on Wednesday, 31 July 2024.

It was moved by Councillor Wiggins, seconded by Councillor Smith and:-

RESOLVED that the exempt minute of the meeting of the Premises/Personal Licences Sub-Committee held on Wednesday, 31 July 2024 be formally received and noted.