I was planning a festival or outdoor event. What shall I do?

Under current Government guidance there are limits on the number of people that can gather together.  These restrictions are updated regularly and the latest guidance can be found on the Gov.uk website. If you have any specific questions about planning an event please contact the team on Licensing@warwickdc.gov.uk .

If you have conditions on your licence that specify compliance with event management plans, including involvement of national emergency services then you need to take into account  the latest Government guidance. If your conditions or event management plans require you to involve emergency services in a particular way, then it is likely that you would be unable to comply with those conditions, as the emergency workers cannot cooperate with you.

What if my Designated Premises Supervisor can’t be at the premises because of COVID-19?

It is not a requirement in any circumstances for a DPS to be physically present at the premises, unless there is a specific condition on the premises licence requiring the DPS to be present at all times.  Such a condition is unusual. The role of a DPS is to be the point of contact with the Responsible Authorities and to have day to day management of the premises and a good awareness of what is happening there. Some elements of management and awareness can be conducted remotely. If the DPS is unable to fulfil their role for a short time, this is not an immediate offence. It is important to have a written record of who is authorised at the premises to supply alcohol. If your DPS will be away long term, or you lose contact, then you should make a variation to the DPS, through an application to the Council.

Can I provide take-aways and home deliveries?

Yes, you can. The Government has specifically envisaged this and confirmed that any planning restrictions (such as use class) that would normally prevent the use of premises for takeaways will be relaxed. A similar attitude is likely to be applied in licensing, although there was no formal announcement.

Your licence will specify if you are licensed for the supply of alcohol or the supply of late night refreshment, for consumption on or off the premises or both. If your licence specifies “for consumption on the premises only”, this is the part that is likely to be relaxed by the Council (Licensing Authority) during this emergency time. It will help if you can explain clearly what you want to do, and any additional safeguards that you will need to take. If you plan to supply alcohol as home deliveries, you must be very careful to observe age checks to ensure that no under-age deliveries take place. Anyone who is not a personal licence holder will need to be authorised to supply alcohol by a personal licence holder, whether on or off the premises.

There are no restrictions of any type on the delivery of cold soft drinks and cold food. The usual restrictions on the supply of hot food and hot drinks relate to supplies for consumption on or off the licensed premises between the hours of 23:00 and 05:00 only. There are no restrictions outside of those times.

You will need to think very carefully about providing PPE (personal protective equipment) to your delivery staff, to protect them and the people taking the products delivered.  Door to door deliveries must be carefully managed to restrict the spread of the virus through that means. Protective equipment is available.

Do I still have to pay my annual licence fee?

Yes, there is no specific exemption on offer at this time to allow you to avoid paying your annual licence fee.  The Government are introducing emergency grant and business support packages, business rate relief schemes etc.  If you need to, you should investigate these.

I served a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) but now the event cannot go ahead. What shall I do?

If you want to maintain your available number of TENs for the rest of the year, you could cancel the one/s that you cannot proceed with now. There is no provision for the return of the £21 fee that you paid.