Personal licences will allow holders to sell alcohol for consumption on or off any premises covered by a Premises Licence and to be nominated as a Designated Premises Supervisor.
What is a Designated Premises Supervisor?
All premises operating under a premises licence to sell or supply alcohol must appoint a designated premises supervisor (DPS) for the premises. There can only be one DPS per premise and that person is in overall charge of the premises. The DPS does not have to be on the premises at all times, but they must take responsibility for what happens there. A person cannot become a DPS unless he/she is also a personal licence holder. If you have a community premises, it may be possible to remove the requirement to have a designated supervisor who is in charge of and responsible for the alcohol sales of a premise.
How do I apply for a Personal Licence?
In order to be eligible to apply for a personal licence you must:
- Be 18 years of age or over
- Possess a licensing qualification, unless they are a member of the company of the Master, Warden and Commonality of Vintners of the City of London
- You must also not have any unspent convictions for any relevant offences in either England or Wales or for any foreign offences. The time elapsed for each offence is determined under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. If an applicant has an unspent conviction the Police will be notified and they will consider whether the offences will undermine the Crime Prevention Objective and issue an objection notice to the authority within 14 days if it is felt it does. The licensing authority must then hold a hearing to decide whether to grant the licence.
- Not have forfeited a licence in the preceding 5 year period.
The fee for the application is £37. Obtain an application be contacting the Licensing Section, no online application available.
To Change the name and address of a Personal Licence
You can apply on-line to change the name and address details of a Personal Licence.
Failure to notify the Licensing Authority that issued the Personal Licence constitutes an offence which is punishable by a maximum fine of £2500.
Renewal of a Personal Licence
With effect from 1st April 2015 you are no longer required to renew your Personal Licence. As such, Personal Licences issued prior to 1st April 2015 had an expiry date on the licence. There is no longer an expiration of this form of licence and the licence will remain in force unless it is surrendered, suspended or revoked and therefore the expiry date can be ignored. There is no requirement to re-issue a new licence in order to omit the expiry date on Personal Licences issued prior to 1st April 2015.
Alternatively you can contact the Licensing Section for application forms.