Meeting documents

It was agreed that Councillor N Smith Chair the Hearing.

(Councillor N Smith in the Chair).

Councillor N Smith introduced the parties and explained the procedure to be followed.

The Hearing Regulations 2005 state that the Authority must allow parties an equal maximum period of time in which to present their evidence. It was agreed that the maximum time for each presentation would be forty minutes.

Miss E McHugh presented the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer and informed members that representations had been received from Leicestershire Constabulary with concerns of crime and disorder in and around the premises. Public safety and underage sales. Representations had also been received from 18 residents in the vicinity of the premises and Ashby Town Council on the grounds of public nuisance, public safety, crime and disorder and the protection of children from harm.

The applicant's representative then presented the application on behalf of the applicant. He advised members that the applicant had made an application to transfer the existing licence held by Mr A M M Holland to himself, and to vary the designated premises supervisor. Therefore, the applicant was to be deemed as the premises licence holder and designated premises holder.

The applicant's representative raised the following points:

- Patrons now exit the premises through the side doors onto Davis Passage, leading directly onto Market Street, joining those exiting from Ciro's and the White Hart. It would be difficult to pinpoint the source of the public nuisance issues.

- A level of noise should be expected by residents in town centres. There was no evidence to suggest that the noise from the premises is a public nuisance.

- The applicant took control of the management of the premises in June. Since that time, the number of incidents shown in the statistics presented by the police had dramatically reduced. The applicant also gave assurances that Mr A M M Holland would have no further involvement in the running of the club.

- With regards to the removal of the nudity clause, no relevant representations had been made which would allow for the saturation policy to be effected.

- Extending the opening hours of the premises would allow for a staggered dispersal of patrons, reducing the influx into the town centre at 2.00am. This would reduce the demand on taxis, public transport and food outlets, thereby reducing disorder.

The applicant's representative stated that the applicant was prepared to agree to the refusal of further admittances after 1.00am, and was willing to amend the closing time of the premises to 3.00am.

In response to a question from Mr Tandy, Miss McHugh explained that the application for the transfer of the licence to the applicant was not under consideration at this hearing.

Sergeant S Moore then presented the objections on behalf of the police which were attached to the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer. Sergeant Moore stated that there had been a marked improvement in the running of the premises, however no change of licence holder had been indicated at the time representations were made by the police. He stated that premises in the city which offered activities such as pole dancing were well run in his experience. Sergeant Moore expressed concern that the extended opening hours would exacerbate the crime and disorder issues in the town centre. In response to a question from Mr Scott, Sergeant Moore stated that some clubs offering pole dancing in the city were within residential areas.

Sergeant J O'Brien added that the extension of the opening hours would not reduce the amount of crime and disorder, but would require policing for a longer period of time. In response to a question from a member, Sergeant O'Brien stated that there would be minimal police cover from 4.00am. The Legal Advisor reminded members that this was not an issue under the Licensing Act 2003.

Mrs M Tuckey then presented her objections on behalf of Ashby Town Council which were attached to the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer. She stated that the extension of the opening hours would make the noise level from the club unacceptable for the residents of the area.
There were no questions for Mrs Tuckey.

Mr C Tandy then presented his objections on behalf of the Ashby Civic Society which were attached to the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer. He explained that there was an ongoing problem with anti-social behaviour and crime in Ashby town centre, and expressed his support of the saturation policy. He stated that granting the licence would increase the public nuisance problems, and that the impact on residents would be disproportionate and unreasonable.

Mr C Scott then presented his objections which were attached to the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer. He stated that he was affected by the noise level from the club. He believed that the intention of offering pole dancing was to attract patrons from the wider area, which would increase the public nuisance. Mr Scott expressed concern that there would be no further opportunities for representations to be made should the licence be granted. The Legal Advisor raised the point that interested parties could ask for a review of the licence at any time.

There were no questions for Mr Scott.

Mr D McAvoy then presented his objection, which attached to the report of the Licensing Enforcement Officer. He stated that he was also affected by the noise level from the club. He believed that the noise level was unacceptable, and that it would be unreasonable for this to continue until 4.00am.

There were no questions for Mr McAvoy.

Mr Tandy, Mrs Tuckey and Mr McAvoy gave brief closing statements. Sergeant Moore gave a brief closing statement, during which he commended the saturation policy. The applicant's representative gave a brief closing statement, during which he reiterated earlier comments and stated that there was no evidence in the report to suggest that public nuisance was an issue.

At 11.35am the Sub Committee adjourned to consider its decision and re-convened at 12.45pm.

The Legal Advisor announced on behalf of the Chairman that in reaching its decision the Sub-Committee had taken into account the Licensing Act 2003, the guidance of the Secretary of State, the Statement of Licensing Policy and all the relevant representations made in writing and verbally at the hearing.