Agenda item

Consideration of interim steps following an application by Kent Police for an expedited review of the premises licence.

Discussion:

The Chairman asked those present to introduce themselves and explained the process that the hearing would follow as outlined in the agenda.

The Principal Licensing and Enforcement Officer said that, in accordance with the Licensing Act 2003, the Council had received an application for an Expedited Review from Kent Police, in relation to the premises licence at The Cricketers, 88 High Street, Rainham, as the premises had been associated with serious crime and disorder. She advised that the Act required expedited premises licence review applications to be considered within 48 hours, pending a full hearing of the issues within 28 days of the date that the application was served.

The Principal Licensing and Enforcement Officer stated that the purpose of the hearing was for the Panel to determine what interim steps to take, pending the full review hearing, and advised that the options were:

(a)       the modification of the conditions of the premises licence;

(b)       the exclusion of the sale of alcohol by retail from the scope of the licence;

(c)        the removal of the Designated Premises Supervisor from the licence;

(d)       the suspension of the licence.

PC Hill presented the application for an expedited review on behalf of Kent Police and said that The Cricketers was a busy public house which held a disco on Friday and Saturday evenings. On Saturday, 21 July 2018 at approximately 00:32 hours, a violent incident had occurred at the rear of the premises where the disco was being held and it had continued outside of the premises. PC Hill detailed the sequence of events that had occurred during the disturbance which included a glass bottle being thrown and hitting a female customer on the head. 

PC Hill highlighted a previous violent disturbance at the premises in February 2018; this had led to discussions between Kent Police and representatives of the premises which had resulted in a variation to the premises licence to restrict the use of glass and increase the minimum number of door staff.

PC Hill stated that Kent Police were not requesting the suspension of the licence as an interim step, but were seeking a modification of the licence conditions as follows:

1.            A reduction in the operating hours of the premises from 01:00 hours to 23:00 hours on Fridays and Saturdays.

2.            The removal of all glass, including wine and champagne bottles, after 20:00 hours on Fridays and Saturdays.

3.            An increase in the minimum number of Security Industry Authority (SIA) registered door staff employed on Fridays and Saturday evenings, from three to four.

4.            The removal of the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS).

Ms Jung, Counsel for the Licensee, questioned PC Hill regarding Kent Police’s request that the DPS be removed by the Panel as an interim step . In response PC Hill stated that Kent Police would be satisfied by an assurance from Greene King that they would replace the DPS at The Cricketers.  In response to Ms Jung’s question regarding a possible reduction in operating hours to 00:00 hours if conditions on the use of glass and door staff were accepted, PC Hill said that, although Kent Police would prefer the operating hours to cease at 23:00 hours, 00:00 hours might be manageable if the other modified conditions were put in place as interim steps.

In response to questions from members of the Panel, PC Hill stated that the age range of the pub’s clientele varied depending on the time of day. On Friday and Saturday evenings, younger customers congregated in the disco area at the rear of the premises.  At other times this area was set out for restaurant use.  PC Hill clarified that, following the incident in February 2018, Kent Police had met with the DPS, the Area Manager and members of Greene King’s legal team. Following incidents during the World Cup, a further meeting with the DPS had been held. Asked about the preferred number of door staff, PC Hill said that the CCTV footage of the incident on 21 July 2018 showed that, although the three door staff on duty had worked hard, there had been an insufficient number of them to deal with the level of disturbance. Kent Police were therefore of the opinion that there should be a minimum of four door staff on Friday and Saturday evenings, but would expect a higher number to be on duty for some events.

On behalf of the Premises Licence Holder, Ms Jung emphasised Greene King’s experience in operating licensed premises in a professional manner and expressed their regret that this incident had occurred.  The Cricketers was a large, well run, family friendly public house. The disco that was held on Friday and Saturday evenings did not play the type of music that was conducive to violent behaviour. Greene King was actively seeking a new DPS for these high energy premises. The company had previously changed the security firm who provided their door staff and had increased the minimum number from two to three. It was noted that Kent Police had acknowledged the hard work of the door staff. The licence had also been varied to restrict the use of glass on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Ms Jung said that Greene King had tried to work with the Police and, following discussions with the representatives of Kent Police before the hearing, she proposed the following modifications to the licence conditions:

1.            From 21:00 hours on Fridays and Saturdays no glass bottles to be given to customers but instead kept behind the bar or decanted.

2.            A minimum of four SIA registered door staff to be employed on Fridays and Saturdays.

3.            Door staff to start work at 20:00 hours at the latest so they could check the venue and plan for the evening.

4.            All licensable activity to cease at 00:00 hours.

Ms Jung added that Greene King had identified a number of experienced individuals for the role of DPS at The Cricketers. They were proactive, energetic long term employees of Greene King who knew the premises.

In response to questions from Panel members, Ms Jung explained that the door staff kept a log of incidents that occurred at the premises.  They had taken the names of individuals involved in the incident on 21 July 2018 and had passed them to the Police together with the CCTV footage. Those individuals would be barred from the premises. She confirmed that, at present, only wine and champagne bottles were given to customers and the bottle which hit a customer during the incident was a Prosecco bottle. Members questioned the level of supervision of the DPS and also the amount of ‘drinking up time’ at the premises. It was noted that ‘drinking up time’ was not a licensable activity.

The Chairman asked both parties if they wished to sum up.  On behalf of the Licensee, Ms Jung urged the Panel to only impose interim steps that were necessary. She hoped that the four modifications to the licence conditions that had been offered would satisfy the Panel that there would not be a reoccurrence of the incident that had taken place on 21 July 2018.  

The Chairman asked all parties to leave the room during the Panel’s deliberations.  They returned for the Chairman’s announcement of the Panel’s decision.

Decision:

1.            In considering the application for an expedited review of the premises licence for The Cricketers, 88 High Street, Rainham, Kent ME8 7JH, the Licensing Hearing Panel had regard to the Licensing Act 2003, the statutory guidance issued under S182 of the Act, the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy and all matters before it, both written and oral.

2.            The Panel accepted the application from Kent Police and imposed interim steps that the Police representatives had proposed, pending a full review of the premises licence. These were:

a)        A reduction in the operating hours of the premises from 01:00 hours to 23:00 hours on Fridays and Saturdays.

b)        The removal of all glass, including wine and champagne bottles, after 20:00 hours on Fridays and Saturdays.

c)         An increase in the minimum number of SIA registered door staff employed on Fridays and Saturday evenings.

3.            The Panel considered these interim steps were necessary to provide Greene King with the opportunity to consider the issues associated with the operation of the premises. 

4.            The Panel noted that Greene King had offered to replace the Designated Premises Supervisor at The Cricketers and trusted that this would take place and would lead to the premises being more carefully managed.

.