The Business and Planning Act 2020 introduced a new licence which allows premises serving food and drink such as bars, restaurants and pubs to apply for a pavement licence to place removable furniture (including tables and chairs) on a relevant highway adjacent to the premises.
The furniture may be used for one or both of the following purposes,
- Use of the furniture by the licence- holder to sell or serve food or drink from, or in connection with the relevant use of, the premises.
- Use of the furniture by other persons for the purpose of consuming food or drink supplied from, or in connection with relevant use of, the premises.
Cost
For licenses to run from 01/10/2023 to 30/09/2024, there is a cost of £100. Charities and Community Interest Companies are exempt.
Apply
Please complete the pavement licence online form:
Applications for a pavement licence must be accompanied by:
- a plan showing the location of the premises defined by a red line, so the application site can be clearly identified
- a plan clearly showing the proposed area covered by the pavement licence in relation to the highway, if not to scale, with measurements clearly shown. The plan must show the positions and number of the proposed tables and chairs, together with any other items that you wish to place on the highway. The plan shall include clear measurements of, for example, pathway width/length, building width and any other fixed item in the proposed area.
- the proposed days of the week on which, and the times of day between which, it is proposed to put furniture on the highway,
- the proposed duration of the licence (for e.g. 3 months, 6 months, or a year);
- evidence of the right to occupy the premises (e.g. the lease);
- photos or brochures showing the proposed type of furniture and information on potential siting of it within the area applied;
- evidence that the applicant has met the requirement with regards to the Site Notice has been met (for example photographs of the notice outside the premises and of the notice itself);
- a copy of a current certificate of insurance that covers the activity for third party and public liability risks, to a minimum value of £5 million, and
- any other evidence needed to demonstrate how the Council’s local conditions, and any national conditions will be satisfied.
On the same day that you make an application for a pavement licence you must:
- fix a notice of the application to the premises so that the notice is readily visible to, and can be read easily by, members of the public who are not on the premises, and
- ensure that the notice remains in place until the end of the consultation period.
- the site notice must state that the application has been made.
- indicate that representations relating to the application may be made to the local authority during the public consultation period (and indicate when that period comes to an end).
After your application is submitted
Public consultation on the application starts the day after the application has been made and lasts for 7 consecutive days, representation received after this day will be considered invalid.
Applications will be checked to ensure that all the relevant information has been provided. If an application is incomplete we will make contact with the applicant requesting the missing information. The 7 day consultation will then start the day after the missing information has been provided.