Agenda and minutes

The Panel is requested to elect a Chairperson for the hearing in line with rules agreed by the Licensing and Safety Committee. 

Councillor Browne was elected Chairperson for this meeting.

An apology for absence was received from Councillor Fearn and Councillor Howcroft-Scott joined the Panel as the third Member.

To agree that the Chairperson, after consultation with the other members of the Panel, sign the record of this meeting outside the meeting. 

It was agreed that the Chairperson, after consultation with the other members of the Panel, would sign the record of this meeting outside the meeting. 

The Chairperson will announce any late items which do not appear on the main agenda but which he/she has agreed should be considered by reason of special circumstances to be specified in the report. 

There were none. 

Members are invited to disclose any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Other Significant Interests in accordance with the Member Code of Conduct. Guidance on this is set out in agenda item 5.

Disclosable pecuniary interests

There were none.

Other significant interests (OSIs)

There were none.

Other interests

There were none.

To consider a new Premises Licence application for Tesco Express, 48 – 52 Napier Road, Gillingham, Kent. ME7 4HD following the submission of representations, received during the consultation period.

Discussion:

The Licensing Officer informed the Panel that the applicant had submitted a new Premises Licence application at Tesco Express, 48-52 Napier Road, Gillingham, Kent ME7 4HD.

The Panel were informed that an application for a new Premises Licence had been received on 10 December 2024. The application was for the sale of alcohol by retail between 06:00 and midnight daily and for late night refreshments from 23:00 to midnight daily.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that the Responsible Authorities had been contacted and the public notices had been advertised in accordance with the regulations.

The Panel were informed that Licensing Services had received three representations to the application in relation to all four of the licensing objectives from local residents. The Objectors did not attend the hearing.

The Chairperson invited the applicant to speak in support of their application.

The applicant explained that they proposed to open the convenience store in October 2025 and an experienced Operations Manager would oversee the store. The Panel were informed that the Operations Manager oversaw 31 stores in total and had worked well in Medway without any issues. The proposed store would provide 20 jobs and there would be an opportunity for local people to apply for these positions.

The applicant referred to the importance of being a good neighbour and having a point of contact for local residents so that if any issues did arise, they could be resolved as soon as possible.

The Panel were informed of the industry standards that Tesco stores adhered to and that all staff were trained in security, age restricted sales, how to spot intoxicated customers and conflict resolution.

With regards to the representations received the applicant said that it was a shame that the residents were not in attendance as the applicant would welcome an opportunity to speak with them to discuss any issues they had. The Licensing Officer agreed to pass the contact details for the applicant and Operations Director on to the residents that had submitted representations. The Panel also suggested that the contact details should be shared with the relevant councillors for the ward.

With regards to the issue of noise, the applicant informed the Panel that the plant would be behind a fence so noise was contained, and the bin would also be stored within the fenced off area and not near the residents back gate. The applicant explained that the bin would only hold waste from the litter bins in front of the store as all other waste was sent back on delivery vehicles for recycling. The Panel were informed that any noise from deliveries would be minimal as they would be unloading at the back door across freshly laid tarmac and engines would not be idling whilst delivering and would be turned off.

With regards to parking the Panel were informed that there would be 12 allocated spaces for store customers. The applicant explained that there would be litter bins outside of the premises which will be regularly checked, cleaned  ...  view the full minutes text for item 683.

It is recommended that the Panel exclude the press and public from the meeting during the decision-making process for the reasons set out in the report. 

Decision:

The press and public were excluded from the meeting during the Panel’s deliberations and decision making in respect of agenda item 6,  because consideration of this matter in public would disclosure information falling within paragraph 5 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, as specified in agenda item 7 (Exclusion of the Press and Public) and, in all the circumstances of the case, the Panel considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.