Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Amitabh Singh and Councillor Paul Birch.

There were no declarations of interest made.

An application for a variation of a Premises Licence in respect of The Blakenhall Service Station, 327 Dudley Road, Wolverhampton, WV2 3JY was considered following representations received from the Licensing Authority, West Midlands Police and Other Persons.

The Chair welcomed all parties to the hearing and invited all those present to introduce themselves. All parties did so. He outlined the procedure to be followed and all parties confirmed that they understood the procedure.

The Sub-Committee’s statutory duty was to consider the application and any representations, and to take such steps as contained in the Licensing Act 2003 as it considered appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives.

Debra Craner, Section Leader Licensing, provided an outline of the application. Mr Thomas Griffiths, Barrister representing the Applicant, confirmed that the summary was accurate.

The Chair invited the Applicant to present the application. Mr Thomas Griffiths, Barrister representing the Applicant, did so as per Appendix 1 of the report. He stated the following:

·       The original premises licence was granted in 2019 and there had been no issues at the premises since that time.

·       The application would create new jobs and provide further facilities to the community.

·       No objections had been received from members of the public.

·       The premises already undertook regular risk assessments (no less than once every three months) as to the need for the provision and employment of SIA regulated door staff.

·       The premises should not be tarred with the problems of other businesses.

·       The licence could be granted for probationary trial period.

·       There was no evidence that the premises was the cause of any problems or anti-social behaviour and therefore the presumption of non-grant was rebutted.

The Chair afforded all parties present the opportunity to question Mr Griffiths and his client in relation to his submission. Mr Griffiths and his client responded to questions asked.

The Chair invited the Licensing Authority to make representations. Greg Bickerdike, Licensing Manager, did so as per Appendix 5 of the report. He

suggested that if granted, a condition be applied to the licence requiring that labels stating the premises name and address be attached to all sales of alcohol.

The Chair afforded all parties present the opportunity to question the Licensing Authority in relation to its submission. No questions were asked.

The Chair invited West Midlands Police (WMP) to make representations. Aimee Taylor did so as per Appendix 6 of the report. She stated the following:

·       Granting the Application would impact on the Culminative Impact Zone (CIZ) as the Premises was located opposite the entrance to Phoenix Park which already suffered from noise, alcohol abuse, anti-social behaviour and instances of violence.

·       During a resident meeting, local residents had reported anti-social behaviour and rubbish in a nearby street.

·       The application should be refused.

The Chair afforded all parties present the opportunity to question West Midlands Police in relation to its submission. Miss Taylor responded to questions asked.

The Chair invited all parties present to make their final address.

West Midlands Police, the Licensing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.