Licensing Hub

Helpful advice: Poppleston Allen issues points to consider when it comes to serious incidents in licensed premises (image: Getty/Stephen Barnes)

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Crime scene prevention

By Andy Grimsey, senior consultant solicitor, Poppleston Allen

It is a sad fact of life that a serious incident can happen even in the best-run venues and while the chances may be small in your pub, the consequences can be severe.

Issue address: the latest Poppleston Allen column looks at security personnel (image: Getty/BitsAndSplits)

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Staying secure against rogue security operatives

By Joe Harvey, associate solicitor, ​Poppleston Allen

A man goes to a club and is stopped by the bouncer. “No tie, no entry” he says. The man walks back to his car and desperately searches for the required neckwear.

Detailed checks: there can be various licensing aspects to take into consideration when purchasing a closed property (image: Getty/Weera Danwilai)

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The devil is in the licensing detail

By Carl Weston, head of marketing and partner (non-solicitor), Poppleston Allen

This week, the legal experts at Poppleston Allen look at potential licensing issues when taking on a shuttered site.

Verification required: David Inzani says selling to those under age can cause licence suspensions or even revocations

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The woes of age verification

By David Inzani, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

I expect I am not alone in being a 35-year-old who still gets ID’d buying alcohol at the supermarket.

Test purchases: Poppleston Allen issues a number of tips on gaming machines in pubs (image: Getty/SolStock)

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Age verification for machines in pubs – a gamble not worth taking

By Felix Faulkner, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

Over the recent months I have noticed an increase in both industry and local/national media reports regarding gaming machines in pubs and test purchasing, especially post Covid.

Advice given: Poppleston Allen outlines how best to deal with noise complaints (image: Getty/shisheng ling)

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Top tips on dealing with noise complaints

By Natasha Beck, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

With the weather hopefully improving and the lighter nights coming it is likely that operators will be looking to maximise the use of any external space that they may have at the premises.

Licence advice: Poppleston Allen outlines how the police may bring a review (image: Getty/BrianAJackson)

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Reminder on reviews

By Graeme Cushion,

Following on from recent and highly publicised reviews involving Brixton Academy and Crane Night Club in Birmingham, it seemed like an appropriate time to issue a reminder on the pitfalls and processes involved in facing a review of your premises licence....

Release date: it is reported draft legislation for Martyn's Law is anticipated to be published early spring (image: Getty/djgunner)

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Martyn’s Law – What is it? Who does it apply to? When will it take effect?

By Alex Tomlinson, trainee solicitor, Poppleston Allen

With a view to stepping up the UK’s resilience to terrorism, the Government recently announced details for the Protect Duty, to be known as 'Martyn’s Law' in tribute of Martyn Hett, who alongside 21 others died in the Manchester Area terrorist...

Drinks advice: as well as policy consultations, this week's legal Q&A also looks at wine measures (image: Getty/alaincouillaud)

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Paying attention to policy consultations

By Suraj Desor, senior associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

The latest Q&A from legal experts Poppleston Allen looks at policy consultations and wine measures.

Festive help: Sarah Taylor (right) discusses the rules of serving alcohol to those as young as 16 (Credit: Getty/Marvin Samuel Tolentino Pineda)

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Know the law on serving alcohol to under-18s

By Sarah Taylor, partner, Poppleston Allen

Of all the articles our licensing solicitors write for The Morning Advertiser each year, there is one topic that gets more feedback and interest than any other – under-18s in pubs.

Delivering success: Poppleston Allen advises on the legal aspect of setting up a home delivery service (image: Getty/andresr)

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Delivering Christmas cheer

By Felix Faulkner, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

It is undeniable that home delivery is booming. However, the convenience of shopping without leaving the sofa means that you have to work harder to get customers through their (and your) door.

Advice given: what happens when a reveller wants to take their half-finished bottle of wine away with them? (image: Getty/Klaus Vedfelt)

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Step in to Christmas… but can I step out with my drink?

By Joseph Harvey, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

As I drove into the office one foggy November morning and the rain gently drizzled on to my windscreen, Michael Bublé insisted to me via my radio that it was Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas.

Advice given: 'There are some measures that you can introduce to try and avoid being in the position where a customer who has had too much to drink will want to or attempt to drive home and these include encouraging customers who are driving not to drink,' says Poppleston Allen's Natasha Beck

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Vigilance urged on drink driving

By Natasha Beck, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

The THINK! ‘Mates for Life’ drink drive campaign has recently relaunched again recently with the aim of encouraging friends to intervene if someone is attempting to drink and drive, with the message ‘A mate doesn’t let a mate drink and drive.’

Advice provided: Poppleston Allen provides tips on hosting lotteries and raffles (image: Getty/JodiJacobson)

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Top tips on football fun and festivities

By Alex Tomlinson, trainee solicitor, Poppleton Allen

The men’s World Cup and Christmas festive season has quickly come upon us.

Advice given: Poppleston Allen suggests dealing with the problem head on is the way forward (image: Getty/7713Photography)

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How to deal with noise complaints

By Graeme Cushion, partner, Poppleston Allen

Poppleston Allen partner Graeme Cushion looks at the rules around music noise and residents.

Rules revealed: Poppleston Allen looks at the law around under 18s serving alcohol (image: Getty/angeluisma)

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Rules around under-18s serving alcohol

By Jonathan Smith, partner, Poppleston Allen

Thinking of employing your 17-year-old daughter to work behind the bar? Short staffed to such an extent that you need to think about the children of some of your friends helping out in the restaurant? With the well-publicised difficulty in recruiting...

Advice provided: Poppleston Allen's James Anderson offers pointers on obtaining a late licence

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Licensing and the issue of trading late

By James Anderson, partner, Poppleston Allen

I attended the London Property Forum last week which had three principal speakers and a panel to discuss issues relevant to the trade; two of the speakers were from late-night businesses, operators of cocktail bars and nightclubs respectively, and the...

Technology option: many pubs use apps for customers to place orders (image: Getty/Klaus Vedfelt)

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Self-service in pubs – is it worth the risk?

By Felix Faulkner, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

We have seen the casual dining market evolve considerably over the last few years with a number of high profile restaurant chains struggling to survive since Covid and some entering company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) in an effort to off-load under-performing...

Advice given: Poppleston Allen has issued tips on licensing and insolvency (image: Getty/Adam Gault)

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Don’t forget the licensing implications of an insolvency

By Andy Grimsey, senior consultant solicitor, Poppleston Allen

It was shocking although not surprising to hear insolvencies for pubs, restaurants and bars were up 59% on last year, as reported recently in The Morning Advertiser.

Football tournament: the first game of the World Cup is set to take place on Sunday 20 November (image: Getty/svetikd)

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Licensing tips to avoid the trips at this year’s World Cup

By Suraj Desor, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

With the Football World Cup fast approaching, whilst the competition presents lots of opportunities for licensees – which is very welcome - there are some potential pitfalls that they need to be aware of to ensure a safe and enforcement-free tournament..

Compliance tips: staffing is just one of the current issues Poppleston Allen highlights as a challenge for the sector at the moment (image: Getty/sturti)

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Compliance in the face of adversity

By Graeme Cushion, partner, Poppleston Allen

With the pandemic now fading somewhat into the background, a whole new series of challenges seem to be making life as difficult as possible for operators.

Legal expertise: Suraj Desor looks at licensing plans

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

Best laid (licensing plans)

By Suraj Desor, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

Licensing plans form part of the premises licence and they must be an accurate representation of the layout of the premises.

Info provided: Poppleston Allen outlines the Licensing Act 2003 (image: Getty/SolStock)

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

Minor or major – it makes a difference

By Andy Grimsey, senior consultant solicitor, Poppleston Allen

Those with a long licensing memory will recall the years between November 2005 (when the Licensing Act 2003 first had effect) and June 2009.

Ongoing policy: the Government recently announced another extension to the fast track pavement licence (image: Getty/S_Z)

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Extension to pavement licence regime

By David Inzani, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

The Government’s decision this month to extend the temporary provision for quicker and cheaper pavement licences for hospitality businesses was a nugget of good news among the current headlines.

Top tips: Poppleston Allen has some advice on licensing rules in outside areas (image: Getty/Muenz)

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What are the licensing rules for beer gardens?

By Alex Tomlinson, trainee solicitor, Poppleston Allen

British summertime has well and truly arrived and beer gardens across the country are back in full swing, with Covid restrictions now a distant memory.

Legal eye: Poppleston Allen's Suraj Desor explores the late-night levy

The late-night levy – where are we now and what is next?

By Suraj Desor, associate solicitor at Poppleston Allen

With the news that Nottingham City Council is considering removing the late-night levy that is currently in place, 10 years on from its introduction, how has it fared and what next for the levy?

Expert tips: Poppleston Allen partner Jonathan Smith outlines licensing hearings

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The lowdown on licensing hearings

By Jonathan Smith, partner, Poppleston Allen

Licensing law involves a lot of detailed administration. There is a lot of form filling (thankfully mostly online nowadays), particularly in respect of varying your Designated Premises Supervisor, changing the name and address of the licence holder or...

Professional thoughts: licensing expert James Anderson gives his take on the current rules in place and any amends that could benefit operators

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The musings of a licensing lawyer

By James Anderson, partner, Poppleston Allen

These are a few thoughts on my job as a licensing lawyer and what is good and what changes would help.

Top advice: tips on how to utilise TENs (image: Getty/buzbuzzer)

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Top tips on TENs

By Andy Grimsey, senior consultant solicitor, Poppleston Allen

We all know how useful temporary event notices (TENs) can be. Particularly in the years 2022 and 2023, when the Government has, in order to support business following Covid, increased the limits for TENs from a maximum of 15 per premises to 20, and a...

Advice given: pubs that are recent converts to social media and email marketing need to be careful if they are planning to hold sweepstake events for this weekend’s Grand National (image: Getty/golero)

Digital marketing could make your pub sweepstake illegal

By Richard Bradley, associate solicitor, Poppleston Allen

With the pandemic forcing pubs to close for large periods over the past two years, we saw many establishments focus their attention on digital marketing to make sure their customers didn’t forget about them.

Looking at licensing: the Business & Planning Act includes two provisions that can help operators - fast track pavement licences and temporary off sales of alcohol (image: Getty/LeoPatrizi)

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

Update on Business & Planning Act

By Suraj Desor, associate solicitor at Poppleston Allen

We are now into the second year since the provisions of the Business & Planning Act were introduced by the Government in July 2020, with a view to helping licensees trade as they reopened post- pandemic.

Legal expert: Poppleston Allen partner James Anderson

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

It’s not what you’ve done, it’s what you may do that counts!

By James Anderson, partner at Poppleston Allen

I have written about this before, but it is becoming an increasingly significant part of the licensing process. The track record and proven operating ability is not as significant as it used to be.

Outside service: the current provisions on al fresco dining are set to end in September this year (image: Getty/claudiodivizia)

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A little slice of European culture in west London

By Felix Faulkner, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

The Covid-19 pandemic has been a catastrophic time for the licensed industry, however not in every sense.

Expert advice: Poppleston Allen has outlined what a shadow licence is (image: Getty/Tom Merton)

Licensing hub - legal with Popplston Allen

Why landlord sometimes protect their interests with a separate premises licence

By Suraj Desor, Poppleston Allen

I have had two cases recently where a premise licence held in the tenant’s name lapsed (due to insolvency) requiring me to lodge an urgent application on behalf of the landlord for a new licence. So now is as good a time as ever to look at the protections...

Awaiting decision: the Government is currently consulting on potentially relaxing licensing hours for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, Poppleston Allen says (image: Getty/Gudella)

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Every little helps…

By Andy Grimsey, partner at Poppleston Allen

So, we enter the New Year and it has a surprisingly and rather depressingly familiar feel to it. Putting Covid-related matters aside for once (if that is even possible nowadays) let’s look at some of the more positive things to come in the licensing calendar...

Advice given: there are a variety of things operators should know about hosting raffles in pubs (image: Getty/kevinjeon00)

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

How to host a raffle

By Imogen Moss, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

With the festive season upon us, many operators will be planning raffles. There are a number of rules venues must follow, so here are some top tips to ensure everyone remains a winner.

Stay on top: there are many boxes to be ticked

Licensing hub – legal with Poppleston Allen

Does your business still meet legal criteria since reopening?

By Richard Bradley, solicitor, Poppleston Allen

Last year, Poppleston Allen published a detailed coronavirus pre-opening checklist and while the process of reopening has, to many, been one of tortuous evolution rather than speedy revolution, many of those considerations remain relevant today.

Top tips: Poppleston Allen urged operators to be prepared in understanding situations and circumstances (image: Getty/Henrik Sorensen)

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Taking care of taking care

By Andy Grimsey, partner at Poppleston Allen

Vulnerability comes in many shapes and sizes. Often people associate vulnerability with particular traits however it is important for operators of licensed premises and their teams to be aware of what makes a person vulnerable along with what can make...

Festive season: Poppleston Allen has issued advice on how to deal with customers who have 'indulged in the odd glass or two more than they usually would'

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How to deal with a bit too much Christmas spirit

By David Inzani, solicitor at Poppleston Allen

I know that you might have only just packed away your Halloween costumes, however this week the John Lewis advert hit our TV screens and that means only one thing – Christmas is coming.

Advice piece: Poppleston Allen give the answers you need to know about pavement licences (image: Getty/urbazon)

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

Legal Q&A: pavement licences

By Poppleston Allen

Licensing experts Poppleston Allen answer questions about pavement licences.

Legal advice: tips on the position of gaming machines (image: Getty/halbergman)

Licensing hub - legal with Poppleston Allen

Legal Q&A: Raffle rules and gaming machines

By Poppleston Allen

Poppleston Allen delves into the rules around hosting a charity raffle as well as locations of gaming machines.

Top tips: Poppleston Allen has outlined how operators could deal with issues around noise (image: Getty/Muanpare wanpen)

Top tips on dealing with noise issues

By James Anderson, Poppleston Allen

It is time I think to revisit the issue of external areas of pub gardens and noise. Post-pandemic, are local people more appreciative of their local and more resigned to the odd burst of loud chatter from the garden, or have the months of closure led...

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