Not just a life of sleaze

Explaining to people that I'm a licensing lawyer usually provokes a bewildered response, so these days I tend to explain that I work with pubs, clubs, restaurants, betting offices, casinos and the like. Sometimes, I even describe it as 'the sleaze department of the firm'. That usually satisfies the curious, or at least it keeps them quiet. Life is really too short to explain that a significant part of what I do is actually work for charities and other good causes, despite the fact that I do practically nothing but licensing.

It is pretty obvious that the vast majority of charities need to fundraise and for many, this involves all manner of events from raffles and sponsored walks through to large-scale events that might attract thousands of people. Think for a moment about the last fete or carnival that you went to '“ wasn't that in aid of some charity or other?

Charities are not exempt from the regime introduced by the Licensing Act 2003, which came fully into force in November 2005, but it is taking a long time for fundraisers to realise the full scale of the implications, not least that if they get it wrong, it might result in a fine of up to £20,000 and six months as a guest of Her Majesty, and not at one of the Royal Palaces (which, incidentally, are exempt from having to have a licence'¦)

Put it another way '“ you want to organise an event (to raise money) and this might typically be a fete or a carnival. Do you need a licence and if so, how do you go about getting one?

If alcohol, music or dancing is involved the answer is almost certainly 'yes' but then again, it could be 'no'. Confused? Then read on'¦

Selling alcohol is a licensable activity and supplying alcohol to members of what used to be known as registered clubs (e.g. the local social club) is also licensable. Giving it away (at a dinner party for example) is not licensable. Including a 'free' glass of wine with a ticket for a concert or other event is licensable because although not easily identifiable, the price of the ticket includes the cost of the alcohol. Including a bottle of scotch as a raffle or tombola prize is also licensable '“ someone had to pay for the ticket.

Providing 'regulated entertainment' is also licensable as is selling hot food and drink between 11pm and 5am but as few charitable events involve the latter, I'll concentrate on the entertainment.

The definition of what entertainment is regulated is not straightforward '“ there are various pre-conditions, there is a list of activities and numerous exceptions, exemptions and the like.

At its simplest, if there is a public audience (including spectators), the entertainment is potentially licensable. Even private events are licensable if the object of the exercise is to provide the (licensable) entertainment with a view to a profit, even if that profit is destined for a charitable cause.

However, the object of the exercise must be to 'entertain'. It follows that if I go along to watch my daughter learning ballet, that's not licensable. If I go along to the annual Christmas show, the purpose of that is to entertain the audience and although this end might not always be achieved, the performance is licensable.

As I mentioned, there is a list of things that are licensable as regulated entertainment '“ the point here being is that even if it is entertainment, if it is not on the list, the activity does not require a licence.

The full list is (with my comments in parentheses):

• a performance of a play (which would include a Punch and Judy show and arguably, such things as battle re-enactments);
• an exhibition of a film (including DVDs and videos but excluding a television broadcast, even if satellite or cable and even if the film being shown is a repeat);
• an indoor sporting event (provided of course that there is a public audience or spectators who are being entertained or the event is private but intended to raise money);
• a boxing or wrestling entertainment (whether indoors or out, but this doesn't include martial arts, unless indoors and therefore falling foul of the requirements for indoor sporting events above);
• a performance of live music (no matter how many performers there are);
• any playing of recorded music (but showing one of the live music TV channels is fine, as is playing a radio or providing background music);
• a performance of dance (but not dancing by people attending a dinner dance for example, unless you provide the dance floor or music); and
• entertainment of a similar description to the three conditions preceding this (which I suspect was a polite way of including striptease and burlesque but not stand-up comics, unless they sing).

Note also that providing facilities for making music or dancing is also licensable so that if a venue provides a dance floor, music to dance to or a piano, that requires a licence.

There are numerous exceptions, the most important of which for these purposes are as follows :

• Religious services and places of worship. The moral here is that if you hold your event in a church, synagogue, mosque or chapel, you won't need a licence (but you will if you sell alcohol or give away a glass of wine with the ticket for the carol concert).
• Garden fetes (or similar functions). Entertainment provided at this sort of event does not require a licence unless for private gain. Raising money for a charity at such an event does not require that the event be licensed unless alcohol is provided. Things get a bit complicated when it comes to the raffles and tombolas. Basically, if the raffle or tombola includes an alcoholic prize and is promoted as part of the (exempt) fete, that sale/supply is not licensable provided that tickets are only sold at the event (and not, for example in advance) and there is no money prize included. First prize £25, second prize a bottle of scotch, therefore requires a licence. Note also that raffles and lotteries generally need to be licensed under separate regimes, all of which will also change when the Gambling Act comes into force'¦
• Moving vehicles. A marching band is licensable. A carnival band performing on the back of a (moving) float is not licensable (even when the float stops, as long as it means to move on a bit later). If you understand the logic of that, please feel free to enlighten me.
• Morris dancing. Yes, if we all dress up in white trousers and try and hit each other with sticks whilst jigging around to the accompaniment of bells, tambourines and accordions, no licence is required, unless the music is amplified.
• hope that by now, dearly beloved reader, you will be understanding a little better why it is that a significant amount of my time is taken up with activities that even my maiden aunts would not regard as remotely sleazy. However, not all is doom and gloom.

Many events take place in or on publicly owned buildings and land. The Government has encouraged local authorities in particular to license these spaces so that event organisers do not have to trouble to apply for a licence each time they want to use the place in question. Better still, a public register of these places exists '“ go to www.culture.gov.uk and follow the links to 'What We Do' and then 'Local Authority Licensed Spaces'. The list is far from complete and it is always a good idea to check with the owner of the land or building to see if a licence already exists.

Two words of caution. Firstly, check that the licence actually covers everything that you want to do. Secondly, make sure that both the landowner and the holder of the licence (they may not be the same people) are happy to allow use of the land or building '“ many local authorities in particular will require detailed risk assessments, particularly on such issues as crowd control, security and fire safety, to name but three.

If, at this point, you are confident that what you are doing is not licensable, exempt or that a licence is already in place, you need not trouble to read on. If not'¦

Ask yourself how many people are going to be there at any given time. If it's less than 500, you can give a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) '“ fill in the form, send it in duplicate to the council with a copy to the police at least 10 working days before the event, pay £21 and, unless the police believe that your plan is likely to cause crime and disorder problems, end of problem. Better still, if the event is something that doesn't involve regulated entertainment (e.g. a gymkhana or flower show) but you want a beer tent, then provided you don't allow more than 500 people into the tent at any one time, a TEN will do the trick. You can even have several beer tents and give a TEN for each one and have thousands of people drinking (but the police might have something to say about that). There are a few restrictions '“ no more than 12 in any calendar year, limited to a maximum of 96 hours each, subject to a cumulative total of 15 days per year, with 24-hour gaps between TENs given by connected persons etc. '“ but a little ingenuity can sometimes go a long way.

If all else fails, there may be no option but to apply for a Premises Licence and, in all seriousness, this could be very bad news, if only from a financial point of view. The basic fee depends on the Non Domestic Rateable Value of the land (or building) and varies from £100 to £635 but if more than 5,000 persons are expected to be present, there is an additional fee, ranging from £1,000 to £64,000 for events that might attract a crowd of more than 90,000 people. The application has to be publicly advertised both on site (the notices have to be on light blue paper, conform to regulations regarding font size, prescribed information, etc.) and in a local newspaper, many of which charge rather more for this type of notice than the 'small ads'.

The application form (freely available from www.culture.gov.uk and most local council websites) seems dauntingly long but the important bits come right at the end where one has to address the 'licensing objectives' which are :

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

The key here is to consult with all the people and bodies that might have a problem with what you propose to do, or, more to the point, how you intend to go about doing it. Each council will have its own licensing policy and in practice, attitudes and requirements vary widely.

Local businesses and residents can object (it's called 'make a representation') as well as the seven responsible authorities to which the application has to be copied.

The process takes a minimum of a month, even if there are no objections and can take up to three months '“ without allowing for appeals, adjournments in the public interest etc. '“ if issues cannot be resolved and a hearing is necessary. The moral here is to think ahead and apply as soon as possible for a licence if one is required.

I should also mention that the application needs to be accompanied by plans (scale of 1:100 unless otherwise agreed) and, if alcohol is involved, there has to be a DPS '“ a designated premises supervisor, who holds a personal licence.

If, like me, you cannot resist but skip to the last chapter of the book, there is of course another option. Find a solicitor who actually knows about licensing and ask for help.