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Community, church or village halls that want to sell alcohol or already sell it can apply for the sale of alcohol to be made the responsibility of a management committee instead of a designated premises supervisor (DPS).
You can also apply to replace the DPS on the premises licence (if you already have one) with the management committee.
Community premises are, or form part of:
By removing the need for the premises to have a DPS, the premises licence holder (which will be the management committee) will be responsible for every sale of alcohol that takes places under the premises licence.
You will need to consider:
You can make the hirer aware of their responsibilities in relation to the Licensing Act 2003 and the sale of alcohol through a hiring agreement. Organisations such as ACRE have resources which may help you with your application.
The Section 182 Licensing Act Guidance to the Licensing Act 2003 also provides advice on what is expected from premises asking to remove the need to have a DPS.
You'll need to provide:
You need to send a copy of your application to Dorset Police at the following address:
Licensing Officer, Licensing Department, Poole Police Station, Wimborne Road, Poole, BH15 2BP.
Payment can be made by card over the phone, or by sending a cheque. The 28 day representation period starts once payment is received.
There is a 28 day period during which the licensing authority and the police can make representations about a new premises licence application. If no representations are received within this 28 day period, the application is granted and the mandatory condition about the DPS is removed.
If the police believe that removing the need to have a DPS at the premises would harm the crime and disorder licensing objective they can object to the application. If this happens it may be necessary to arrange a hearing so the licensing sub-committee can decide whether to grant the application.
Should problems start to happen at the premises, following the removal of the DPS, any responsible authority or person can submit a review application asking for the mandatory condition regarding the DPS to be put back on the premises licence.