Temporary event notices (TENs) are a way of providing permission for small, occasional events at a premises or area (including outdoor places) where licensable activities are not normally allowed.

When you need a TEN

Licensable activities include one or more of the following:

  • Retail sale and supply of alcohol (this includes alcohol supplied as part of an admission ticket, and pay bars at private functions).
  • Provision of 'regulated entertainment' (which includes live and recorded music, dancing, indoor sporting events, the performance of plays, and the exhibition of films).
  • Provision of hot food or hot drink between 11pm and 5am.

If an event includes any of the above activities and is open to the general public, it is licensable. However, there are some exceptions, and we suggest that you contact us for advice if you are in any doubt about whether the proposed event needs a temporary event notice.

Exceptions

Common exceptions are garden fetes, bazaars, etc., which are generally exempt from requiring a licence for regulated entertainment - so long as the event is not held for private gain. 

Music that is incidental to a non licensable activity (e.g. a fashion show or keep fit class) is also exempted. 

There are also exemptions for regulated entertainment when it takes place as part of a religious service or at places of public religious worship (e.g. nativity plays during a service anywhere, choral works or a play in a church even when not part of a service).

There are no exemptions for the sale of alcohol, which will always require a licence

Fee

The fee is £21 each time a temporary event notice is submitted to the council.

Please note payment must be made at the same time the TEN is submitted. Payments are non refundable.

If you do not submit the fee with your TEN then your submission will be invalid and cannot be processed.

The fee of £21 is for acknowledging the notice regardless of the outcome. Should your TEN be void, the fee will not be refunded. Fees are also non-transferable should your event information change.

Rules of a TEN

There are very strict limits on temporary event notices:

  • There must be no more than 499 people at a TEN event at any one time (this includes organisers, stewards, performers, etc, as well as audience and spectators).
  • A premises can hold no more than 15 TEN events per calendar year.
  • The maximum length a TEN event can last is 168 hours. However, the combined duration of TEN events at individual premises must not exceed 21 days per calendar year.
  • Personal licence holders can submit up to 50 temporary event notices per calendar year.
  • Anyone over the age of 18 who is not a personal licence holder can submit up to 5 temporary event notices per calendar year.
  • Multiple temporary event notices can be submitted at the same time but each event requires a separate notice with a separate fee payable.

Timescales

The Licensing team, the Environmental Protection team and the police must receive copies of the completed notice with at least ten clear working days notice of the proposed event. Due to the tight time scales involved we would welcome the forms as early as possible to ensure the safe and effective running of the event.

In exceptional circumstances you may submit a 'Late' TEN, it may be received no later than five clear working days, but no earlier than nine working days before the event. The number of 'late' TENs that can be given in any one calendar year is limited to ten for personal licence holders and two for non-personal licence holders (and these count towards the total number stated above).

Clear working days do not include:

  • the day we receive your TEN
  • the day of the event
  • Saturday or Sunday
  • bank holidays

Example - a TEN applied for on Friday for an event the following Friday will be void as there are only four clear working days. The event cannot go ahead and there will be no refund.

Apply

The application should be made to the local authority where the event is located. You should check this on the Temporary Event Notice section of the GOV.UK website (external link) before submitting your application.

Apply for a Temporary Event Notice

Yes tacit consent applies. We have a target completion period of 14 days for this notice.

If you have not heard from us by the end of this period you can act as though your application is granted. We aim to acknowledge your application and to begin processing it within this period.

Objections

Only the police or an environmental health officer may object to a proposed TEN event, if they have concerns that it could cause crime or disorder, and they must do so within 3 working days of receiving their copy of the notice. Should this happen, the person submitting the temporary event notice will be contacted with a view to mediation to try and resolve any difficulties identified. If mediation is unsuccessful the notice will be placed before the Council’s Licensing Sub-Committee for a decision.

There is no recourse to a hearing with respect to a 'late' TEN. The police or Environmental Health Officer’s decision will be final.

If you are a local resident who has been affected by activities authorised through a temporary event notice you should refer to our complaints procedure for advice on what to do.

Larger events

If any of the below apply, please contact to the Licensing team as a premises licence may be required instead of a Temporary Event Notice.

  • the event will be at a premises where an alcohol or entertainment licence does not already exist
  • there will be more then 499 persons attending the event
  • you need an event management plan for the event
  • the event will be outdoors, and music will be provided
  • the event is not a premises where people ordinarily gather (for example, a village or church hall)
  • you will be using a temporary structure such as a stage or similar
  • the event will last several days
Contact the Licensing team
Phone
01276 707100
Email
licensing@surreyheath.gov.uk