The report of the Director of Planning, Building Control and Licensing is enclosed.

The Chair had agreed to this item being added as an item of Urgent Business.

Consideration was given to a report of the Director of Planning, Building Control and Licensing regarding a Temporary Event Notice.

The Hearing Panel considered the written papers, oral representations of all parties as well as the relevant legislation and guidance.

GMP addressed the Hearing Panel and stated that this notice was for a street party with a road closure from 12:00noon to 20:00 on Bank Holiday Monday 30 August 2021 with a capacity limit of 400. GMP confirmed that initially, no event plans were submitted but added that GMP had now received some, noting the omission of a site plan and also no authorisation for the road closure. GMP stated that the lack of an authorised road closure was a notable safety risk and requested that the Hearing Panel refused and served a counter notice.

A spokesperson for Environmental Health addressed the Hearing Panel and stated that they agreed with GMP’s comments, adding that they had concerns around crowd dispersal, litter and the application not showing evidence of any training in the Licensing Act.

The applicant addressed the Hearing Panel and stated that they understood the concerns from responsible authorities and stated that this was their first attempt at applying for a TEN. The applicant commented that they felt the application was unclear on addressing various issues, hence they had missed certain aspects of the TEN which responsible authorities had picked up on. In explaining the event the applicant stated that they had applied for a 400 capacity and that the area intended for the TEN contained 58 houses of families, students and professionals. The idea was to give the opportunity for the residents to meet each other and enjoy live music, share food and crafts after a long period of lockdown. The applicant stated that the street had received some funding which would help pay for two SIA staff and that further staffing would be made up of volunteers from local residents’ groups.

During questioning from the Hearing Panel and responsible authorities, it was noted that the applicant had not secured the right to legally barricade the street from traffic and that the street was intended to house a small stage for music and poetry, tables and chairs and craft stalls. It was also noted that large crowds could be drawn to attend the event and no specific plans were in place to cap numbers or assist with the dispersal of attendees and that no plans for waste disposal had been put in place.

During their deliberations, the Hearing Panel felt that the applicant had good intentions and that they generally encourage this kind of community activity but could not grant such an event without any legal agreement in place to close off the street. The Hearing Panel had further concerns around the staffing, waste disposal, digital promotion, crowd control and dispersal and felt that without these measures, the licensing objectives would be undermined. Therefore, the Hearing Panel made the decision to issue a counter notice.

Decision

To issue a counter notice.