Agenda and draft minutes

It was noted that Councillor Clough had been elected Chair for the meeting. The Chair welcomed all parties to the hearing and requested that all parties introduce themselves.

It was noted that Councillor Langley was present as substitute for Councillor O’Rourke.

There were none.

Up to 30 minutes is allowed for this item

Any member of the public or Councillor may participate in Public Forum.  The detailed arrangements for so doing are set out in the Public Information Sheet at the back of this agenda.  Public Forum items should be emailed to democratic.services@bristol.gov.uk and please note that the following deadlines will apply in relation to this meeting:-

Questions - Written questions must be received 3 clear working days prior to the meeting.  For this meeting, this means that your question(s) must be received in this office at the latest by 5 pm on 10^th January 2019.

Petitions and Statements - Petitions and statements must be received on the working day prior to the meeting.  For this meeting this means that your submission must be received in this office at the latest by 12.00 noon on Tuesday 15^th January 2019.

There was none.

This was noted.

Objections.

The Committee’s Legal Advisor informed the meeting that under the Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014 Act any person attending a meeting had a statutory right to report on it with the use of audio or video recordings. Objectors in attendance had been notified of this in advance and it was their decision if they wished to speak. It was noted that the objectors’ ability to speak at the meeting was discretionary and their right to anonymity did not overcome the right to record the meeting.

The Committee noted the objections set out in the report and was minded to hear briefly from the objectors. The Licensing Policy Advisor called each objector and Objectors 12, 9, 6 and 11 addressed the Committee. All other objectors were not in attendance. The Licensing Policy Advisor reported the receipt of a late objection. The applicant’s representative confirmed that they were content to allow the objection, noting that it was in support of the licence.

Site Visit

It was noted that the Members of the Committee had made a site visit to the premises earlier in the day. The Licensing Policy Advisor summarised the findings of the site visit as follows:-

1. A CCTV camera had been installed outside the premises since the last visit;

2. The curtains on the booths now had tassels which improved visibility into the area;

3. The ladies’ toilets had been improved since the last visit;

4. There was a safety issue noted regarding steps which were due to be repaired;

5. A screen had been added to the Smoking Area;

6. Significant refurbishment was taking place in the staff toilets and the men’s toilets on the 1^st floor;

7. Work was taking place to move the fire escape above the 1^st floor dressing room;

8. A question was raised regarding first aid provision and it was noted there were 3 qualified First Aiders on site;

9. There was a query regarding the provision of a defibrillator on site.

Report

The Licensing Policy Advisor introduced the report stating that there was a presumption to grant   unless there were statutory grounds for refusal as set out in the report. The applicant had not made an application to exclude the standard conditions imposed. It was noted that the mandatory grounds for refusal did not apply in this case and so the Committee would consider the discretionary grounds only.

The Council’s Enforcement Team had visited the venue and found no breaches. They had also ‘dip sampled’ CCTV footage and found no breaches. It was noted that neither the Police or the Police and Crime Commissioner had made any comments on the application.

Finally, the Licensing Policy Advisor reminded the Committee of the requirement to have regard to the Section 149 of the Equalities Act 2010 and the mandatory and discretionary grounds for refusal as set out in the report.

Applicant’s submission

The Applicant’s legal representative addressed the Committee as follows:

1. He introduced the owners and management team  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.