Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director Supporting Communities.

This is an application for a new premises licence under section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003.

Consideration was given to a report of the Executive Director Supporting Communities detailing an application for a new premises licence under section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003.

The Licensing Officer informed the panel that the Police Responsible Authority had agreed conditions with the applicant and had withdrawn their representation. Therefore, three relevant representations remained.

It was confirmed by the applicant that there were no amendments to the application.

Caroline Hill, Kentish Town Road Action, also representing Kate Gemmel, of TRACT, summarised the objections to the application, as outlined in their written submissions.

Councillor Meric Apak, speaking as an interested party, summarised his objection to the application, as outlined in his written submission. Councillor Apak also declared for transparency that he was a Member of the Licensing Committee and Licensing Panel E but had not discussed the application with any Licensing Committee Member.

Responding to a question Councillor Apak stated that he had consulted with the community, and it was clear that residents did not think having a premises open beyond framework hours would be appropriate for the area and the few outlets in the area that did open beyond framework hours created disturbance to residents.

Responding to a point of clarification, Councillor Apak stated that he had asked a sample of residents who lived in the immediate vicinity of the premises and the main resident groups in the area.

The applicant Hafiz Farooq, represented by Saheeb Inayat, and supported by Rashad Jabar summarised the application and responded to questions as follows:

• The application was for late night refreshment so that food could be served to customers until 02:00hrs.
• The premises was takeaway only and had no seating available, so people came in ordered their food and left once it was ready. Free delivery was also offered to all customers, which aimed to encourage customers to order from home instead of coming into the premises.
• The applicant had been trading since August 2023, but had taken the business over from an associate who had operated the premises for about a year.
• The applicant had applied to open until 02:00hrs to cater for night shift workers, including staff at the nearby hospitals and it was a new business so needed to maximise income and diversify their offer.
• The premises offered an alternative to other late-night restaurants, away from busy areas such as Camden Town.
• The premises was next to a bus stop, where people often congregated and could be noisy, but this was not the responsibility of the licence holder. 

The interested parties and the applicant then made closing remarks.

Decision and reasons

Panel Members confirmed that they had been able to follow and understand the submissions and discussion in relation to this application.

In deliberation, the Panel considered the comments from the interested parties and the information provided by the applicant and the applicant’s representative.

The Panel noted that the premises was not situated in a CIA, and that the Police Responsible Authority had withdrawn their representations upon the agreement of conditions.

Whilst it was acknowledged that issues with other premises in the area had been raised, the application was to be considered on its own merit.

Some of the Panel were minded to grant the application beyond the framework hours, on the basis that the premises seemed well run and there were other late night food outlets in the area. One Panel Member, however, did not think that the application was appropriate and was opposed to the application being granted outside framework hours, stating that it could set a precedent for other outlets in the area to extend their opening hours, which would create disturbances for local residents.

Panel Members did not think it was appropriate given the location of the premises for it  to be open until 02:00hrs, so instead discussed granting the licence for late night refreshment from 23:00hrs until 00:00hrs Monday to Sunday. 

The Panel noted the conditions that had been proposed by the applicant and the conditions that had been agreed with the Police, as set out at pages 161 to 162 of the agenda pack and agreed to apply all to the licence. These would help the premises to promote the licensing objectives and reduce disturbance to local residents.

Therefore, on being put to the vote with 2 in favour and 1 against,

RESOLVED – Sarah please confirm the times and conditions.

THAT the application for a new premises licence be granted as follows:

a)     Late Night Refreshment

23:00 – midnight Monday to Sunday

Subject to the following conditions:

Conditions consistent with the operating schedule:

1)    A CCTV recording notice will be put on display near the point of sale and window/door.

2)    Delivery drivers will park and switch off engines and wait to be summoned to collect orders, so they do not create a hazard or disturbance to neighbours.

3)    No one under the age of 18 shall be employed to work at the premises.

Conditions agreed with the Police Responsible Authority:

4)    CCTV shall be installed, operated, and maintained, to function all times that the premises is open for licensable activities. Said CCTV will comply with the following criteria:

a)    The licensee will ensure that the system is checked every two weeks to ensure that the system is working properly and that the date and time are correct.

b)    A record of these checks, showing the date and name of the person checking, will be kept and made available to the police or other authorized officer on request.

c)    The Police will be informed if the system will not be operating for longer than one day of business for any reason.

d)    The system will record in real time and recordings will be date and time stamped.

e)    Recordings will be kept for a minimum of 31 days and downloaded footage will be provided free of charge to the police or other authorised officers on request (subject to the Data Protection Act requirements) within 24 hours of any request.

f)      CCTV to cover all entry and exit points of the building and the area the delivery drivers park their vehicles.

g)    CCTV will be of good quality, a standard approved by the police/council licensing officers.

5)    The premises Licence holder shall endeavour to eliminate or reduce any nuisance arising out of its licensable activities. In doing so the premises Licence holder will work with enforcement authorities where any issues are identified. A complaints procedure will be maintained in order that local residents have a means of contact if necessary. A direct telephone number for the manager at the premises shall be publicly available at the times the premises is open. The telephone number is to be made available to residents and businesses in the vicinity.