Agenda item

4.1

The Chief Licensing Officer submitted a report to consider an application to vary a premises licence made under Section 37 of the Licensing Act 2003 in respect of the premises known as The Regency Club (formerly Players Lounge), 20 Yew Lane, Ecclesfield, Sheffield, S5 9AN (Ref No. 66/20).

4.2

Present at the meeting were Michelle Hazelwood (John Gaunt and Partners, Solicitors, for the Applicant), Samantha Bond (Legal Adviser to the Sub-Committee), Jayne Gough (Licensing Strategy and Policy Officer) and John Turner (Democratic Services).

4.3

Samantha Bond outlined the procedure which would be followed during the hearing.

4.4

Jayne Gough presented the report to the Sub-Committee, and it was noted that objections had been received from two local residents, and were attached at Appendix ‘C’ to the report.  The applicant had been invited to the meeting, but was not present.  The two residents had been invited to attend the meeting, but were not present.  Ms Gough further reported that during the consultation period, the applicant had agreed conditions with South Yorkshire Police, which were detailed in Appendix ‘D’ to the report.

4.5

Michelle Hazelwood referred to the additional information which had been circulated prior to the hearing, indicating that she had hand-delivered copies of the documents to the two objectors.  In respect of the case, she stated that whilst there had been issues with the premises some years ago, when operating as a sports bar and, subsequently, a snooker club, there had been no significant issues since 2013, and no concerns raised by South Yorkshire Police or the Environmental Protection Service.  Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the applicant had identified a gap in the market in the area for a fine food premises, and made plans to change the operation to a high-class Indian restaurant.  The applicant had noticed that whilst there were a number of hotels in the area, there was nowhere providing both a sophisticated dining experience, and that such a change provided a potential commercial opportunity.  Ms Hazelwood stated that half the premises would comprise an a la carte restaurant and the other half would comprise a more traditional, Indian restaurant with a buffet facility.  The initial bar area would become a meet and greet area for customers to use prior to entering the restaurant.  She stated that the main variation comprised a change to the layout of the premises, which would involve a significant reduction in the licensed area, and it was planned that one of the snooker rooms would be retained, and used for special events, mainly linked to the World Snooker Championships when being held in the City.  Ms Hazelwood stressed that neither of the objectors had raised any concerns regarding the proposed changes to the layout, and she briefly outlined the other variations to the premises licence which were set out in the report.  With regard to the objections, Ms Hazelwood confirmed that the applicant was not planning to remove any of the existing conditions relating to live music, Pubwatch and door supervisors and, in addition, the applicant had no plans to hold 18^th birthday parties or other similar events.  The term ‘club’ had been chosen to portray exclusivity, and should not be confused with a nightclub or sports club.  There had been no representations from South Yorkshire Police or the Environmental Protection Service, highlighting that such bodies had no concerns with regard to crime and disorder or noise nuisance, respectively, going forward.  It was acknowledged, however that, prior to the hearing, a condition had been agreed with the police. In terms of the variation regarding the opening hours, Ms Hazelwood stated that the extension was only for an additional 15 minutes, which was not likely to create any issues for local residents.  She referred to the objectors’ concerns regarding crime and disorder, indicating that, according to police logs, there had only been one serious incident, in spring 2019, which the applicant had dealt with efficiently.

4.6

In response to questions from Members of, and the legal advisor to, the Sub-Committee, Ms Hazelwood stated that having the condition regarding off sales made allowance for customers who had purchased an expensive bottle of wine, but had not finished it, to take it home to finish at their leisure.  It was not envisaged that, with the nature of the clientele, there would be any issues with customers leaving the premises with other alcoholic drinks.  There was no change to the premises licence with regard to the holding of indoor sporting events, but it was not envisaged that there would be many such events at the premises.  With regard to the snooker room, it was planned that the table would be used by professionals for special events or for practice, particularly when the World Snooker Championships were being held in the City.  The applicant wanted the flexibility to hold special events, such as Bollywood nights and wedding breakfasts, and the possibility of having music at the end of such events.  Again, this was not likely to create any problems as such activities would have to close at 00:00 hours, if the applicant was granted the additional 15 minutes as requested.  The current capacity of the premises was 200, and there were no plans to change this.  In terms of larger events, there would always be a risk of trouble if people were drinking alcohol, and there were no plans to remove the present condition on the licence requiring a risk assessment to be carried out in terms of assessing whether door supervisors would be required.  Ms Hazelwood could not confirm whether the applicant had liaised with the local community in order to address any concerns, although she believed that he had done so.  The applicant had anticipated that off sales would only be relevant with the sale of food, and that he wouldn’t want a condition on the licence to stop customers buying drink when they were not eating.  It was not expected that there would be a considerable level of off sales. 

4.7

Michelle Hazelwood summarised the case on behalf of the applicant.

4.8

RESOLVED: That the attendees involved in the application be excluded from the meeting before further discussion takes place on the grounds that, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted, if those persons were present, there would be a disclosure to them of exempt information as described in paragraph 5 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.

4.9

Samantha Bond reported orally, giving legal advice on various aspects of the application.

4.10

RESOLVED: That the Sub-Committee:-

(a)      in the light of the contents of the report now submitted, together with the representations now made, including the responses provided to the questions raised, agrees that the application to vary the premises licence in respect of The Regency Club (formerly Players Lounge), 20 Yew Lane, Ecclesfield, Sheffield, S5 9AN (Ref No. 66/20), be granted, subject to the following condition:-

          ‘Off sales of alcohol are to be ancillary to the purchase of a sit-down meal at the premises’; and

(b)      recommends that the premises management are involved in close communication with the local community, potentially by providing a phone number which may be used if any issues are experienced.

(NOTE:  The decision will be relayed to all interested parties following the meeting and the full reasons for the Sub-Committee’s decision will be included in the written Notice of Determination.