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Who needs an alcohol licence

A licence is needed for the sale or supply of alcohol. Any premises that sell alcohol to the public need a licence. They include:

• pubs
• supermarkets
• nightclubs

Any members club, like the British Legion or a rugby club, that supplies alcohol also needs a licence.

Who has the right to comment on a licence application?

Anyone is entitled to comment, which is called ' making representations', about any alcohol licence application. You don't have to live or work near the premises.

What you need to do to comment on a licence application

Anyone applying for an alcohol licence will have to advertise their application in a local newspaper. They must also post a notice on pale blue paper outside their premises for 28 days. The licensing authority must also publish details of the application on its website.

You have 28 days after the licensing authority received the application to contact them in writing with your comments.

Your comments must be relevant. That means that they must relate to the likely effects of granting the licence on one or more of the following four licensing objectives:

• the prevention of crime and disorder
• the prevention of public nuisance
• the protection of children from harm
• public safety

Also, your comments should not be 'frivolous' or 'vexatious'. That means anything that is trivial, isn't serious or is just meant to be annoying.

If there are no relevant comments, the licence must be granted. If relevant comments are received a hearing will be held. If you commented, you will be invited to the hearing.

• Find out about licences: alcohol and entertainment - premises Opens new window

What can a licensing hearing decide?

At the hearing, the licensing authority may:

• grant the licence
• refuse the application
• grant the licence but impose conditions, for example, an earlier closing time
• exclude from the scope of the licence a licensable activity, for example, they may grant an alcohol licence but not allow live music

What do to if you have concerns about premises

If you are worried about the way a premises is run then try speaking to the premises' manager first. They may be willing to sort the issue out for you.

If your concern relates to one of the four licensing objectives, you can contact the:

• licensing authority
• environmental health department for noise nuisance
• police for crime and disorder

If these approaches don't work, or aren't right for you, you can ask for a licence review instead.

What to do if you want an existing licence reviewed

You can ask for an existing licence to be reviewed if the problems fall within one of the four licensing objectives.

An application for review must be made in writing to:

• the relevant licensing authority
• the licence holder
• the 'responsible authorities'

The licensing authority can reject an application that it thinks is:

• not relevant to one or more of the licensing objectives
• frivolous or vexatious
• repetitious (the issues have been considered before and rejected)

If the application for a review is accepted, the licensing authority will advertise the request and ask for comments. People have 28 days to respond with any comments.

What happens at the licence review hearing?

A hearing will be held to consider the application review and any comments. You will be invited to attend and given a chance to speak. Options for the hearing include:

• taking no action
• changing, adding or removing licence conditions
• excluding a licensable activity from the licence
• removing the designated premises supervisor, which means the person named in the licence who controls the premises on a day to day basis
• supspending the licence for not more than three months
• revoking the licence

Anyone involved in a licence review can appeal the decision made by the licensing authority to the magistrates' court.