Meeting documents

There were no apologies for absence received.

There were no interests declared.

The Chairman introduced the parties and explained the procedure to be followed. The Hearing Regulations 2005 stated that the Authority must allow parties an equal period of time in which to present their evidence. It was agreed that the maximum time for each presentation be ten minutes.

The Chairman asked if anyone had any objections to the Members of Committee hearing the application.

There were no objections.

The Legal Advisor asked the applicant for the review to confirm what outcomes they would like from the hearing.

Parish Councillor Miles advised the Committee that they would like the Licence to be amended so that all music performed ceased at 11pm and the volume, imparticualy the bass level was reduced significantly.

The Legal Advisor advised the Committee that the Premises Licence Holder and the Health and Safety Department had agreed some conditions to be inserted into the licence prior to the meeting, and on these grounds the Health and Safety Department had withdrawn their representation.

He also advised the Committee that the Premises Licence Holder and the Environmental Protection Team had agreed some conditions, however as the noise level was the subject of the other representations that had been received, it was felt that these conditions should be considered by the Committee.

The Licensing Enforcement Officer presented the report to Members.

There were no questions for the Licensing Enforcement Officer.

Parish Councillor Miles, on behalf of the applicant for the review, Packington Parish Council, addressed the Committee. He informed Members that the Parish Council did not want to stop events like Strawberry Fields, but felt that the licence had been breached as the music had continued past 2.30am, therefore constituting a public nuisance. He advised the Committee that the Parish Council had received an unprecedented number of complaints from residents who had suffered from lack of sleep over the weekend due to the noise volume and duration. He recommended that members considered all music ceases at 11pm and the volume was reduced significantly.

There were no questions from Members and the Responsible Authority.

Following questions from the Premises Licence Holder, Parish Councillor Miles advised the Committee that he, personally had received thirty complaints from residents and he stood by the statement that music had continued past the finish time of 2.30am.

The Responsible Authority had nothing further to add to their representation.

Following questions from the Members, The Environmental Protection Officer gave the Committee an idea of what 45 and 65 decibels sounded like, and informed them that following an event as such as Strawberry Fields, a multi agency meeting was held and the noise level volumes that were monitored, were feedback at this meeting. He advised Members that nothing had gone wrong with the monitoring and that the weather conditions on that weekend had contributed to the music travelling in the direction of Normanton le Heath, Packington and Ashby. He also confirmed that marquees were classed as indoor premises and that compared to the previous years the event organisers were using better quality tents.

Following a question from the Applicant, The Environmental Protection Officer advised the Committee that there is an allowance for difference in decibels due to weather conditions, however on this occasion there was still no breach of the licence condition.

Following questions from Interested Parties, The Environmental Protection Officer advised Members how the monitoring equipment was calibrated and that on the weekend of the event, the chosen location to monitor noise levels in Normanton le Heath had been changed due to the high level of traffic noise along the road had affected the readings.

Following questions from the Premises Licence Holder, The Environmental Protection Officer advised the Committee that a level of 30 decibels would assist with a restful nights sleep, that he could not confirm the what procedures there was in place for the noise consultant hired by the event organisers, to report back, however did state that when they were working in the same location, the consultant did report back to the event.

Mr A Cooper, Chairman of Normanton le Heath Parish Meeting, addressed the Committee. He advised Members that Normanton le Heath was the nearest village to the event site and although there were some residents who would like to see the event stopped, most would continue to support the event, however the continuous background noise and bad language that could be heard over the weekend had lead to many residents complaining. He felt that the licence conditions had been breached and that all the residents had the human right to enjoy the quiet. He urged the Committee to do something about the breached conditions.

Mr Ferrier, Normanton Resident, addressed the meeting. He advised the Committee that he lived less than one mile from the site, and that as an HGV driver who worked unsociable hours felt that due to the lack of sleep, through the high noise level, would possibly make him unsafe on the roads. He informed the Committee that the quality of sound had improved for the event this year and that it would be more appropriate for festivals to be held away from residential areas.

Mr Colclough, Mrs Smith and Mr Batchford did not wish to add anything further to what had been raised so far.

Mr Richichi, Heather resident, addressed the meeting. He advised Members that during the previous two years they had suffered with the noise levels, but this year was better, however concerns that he had this year were deliveries going to the festival site getting lost and going down their driveway and the shut off time for the outdoor live music continuing past 11am due to the performers arriving late.

Mr Hewes, Normanton le Heath resident, addressed the meeting. He advised the Members that the issues that had been raised were similar to two cases that had made the national press where sound equipment had been confiscated. He informed the Committee that he was unable to enjoy the good weather in the garden due to the noise level and was quite happy for the noise level to be monitored from his house.

Mr Dakin, Ashby de la Zouch resident, addressed the meeting. He advised the Committee that due to illness he was a light sleeper and slept with the windows open. He informed the Committee that over the event weekend he had slept very little as the noise from the site could be heard five miles away in Ashby. He added that if noise that loud was made by members of the public on a night out in Ashby they would be arrested and if noise could travel that far, notices should be placed in that area.

Following a question from a Member, the Environmental Protection Officer advised the Committee that six complaints had been received by the Police and the Premises Licence Holder advised Members that Police Officer in charge of policing the event had advised them that the event had the lowest crime statistics over the last three years.

Following a question from a member, the Licensing Enforcement Officer advised Members that on visiting the event site six days after the notice had gone been displayed, it appeared that the notice had gone, but it was replaced straight away.

The Applicant and Interested Parties made brief closing statements requesting that the live music ceases by 11pm and that the noise level is reduced.

There was no closing statement from the Responsible Authority.

The Premises Licence Holder advised Members that the event attracted many repeat customers from all over the UK and, that in holding the event, forty five local businesses had received orders totalling three hundred thousand pounds. He informed the Members that the event organiser worked proactively to offer improvement and to uphold the conditions on the Licence.

The Legal Advisor then reminded the Committee of the steps that they could take before they retired to consider the application.

At 8.15pm the Sub Committee adjourned to consider its decision and re-convened at 9.16pm.