The Licensing Act 2003 has established a regime for
the granting of personal licences to individuals to supply, or to
authorise the supply of alcohol.
The personal licence is separate from
the licence that authorises the premises to be used
for the supply of alcohol. The licensing of individuals
separately from the licensing of premises permits the movement of
personal licence holders from one premises to another, allowing
greater flexibility. It ends the previous outdated regime where
publicans were tied by licences to the premises where they work.
The Act also provides the police and licensing authorities with
powers to deal with errant personal licence holders.
The personal licence relates only to the supply of alcohol
under a premises licence. An individual will not require a
personal licence for the other licensable activities, the provision
of regulated entertainment or late night refreshment, or for
the supply of alcohol under a club premises certificate or
temporary event notice (although personal licence holders will be
able to give 50 temporary event notices each year instead of the
limit of 5 for non-personal licence holders).
A personal licence does not authorise its holder to supply
alcohol anywhere, but only from establishments with a premises
licence authorising the supply of alcohol in accordance with the
premises licence. An individual may hold only one personal licence
at any one time.
All
premises licences authorising
the supply of alcohol must have an identified personal licence
holder known as the designated premises supervisor. This
ensures there is always one specified individual who can be readily
identified at a premises where a premises licence is in
force. This person will usually be responsible for the
day-to-day running of the premises. More than one individual at the
licensed premises may hold a personal licence, although it is not
necessary for all staff to be licensed. But, all supplies of
alcohol under a premises licence must be made by or under the
authority of a personal licence holder.
A personal licence is issued for ten years in the first
instance and can be renewed on application for a further ten years
if the licence holder has not been convicted of any relevant or
foreign offence.
Applicants for personal licences will need to obtain an
accredited qualification first. The aim of the qualification is to
ensure that licence holders are aware of licensing law and the
wider social responsibilities attached to the sale of
alcohol. Personal licence qualification providers are accredited by
the Secretary of State. (see links below for a list of
providers)
Applicants are also required to apply for a basic criminal
record check.
Basic criminal record checks can be obtained from Disclosure
Scotland for further details call their helpline number 0870 609
6006, or their website (see link below).
You can download and complete the forms from the links below,
these will then need to be posted to the address specified.
You may wish to download the comprehensive guidance notes
below for further information on the application process.
The fee for a personal licence application is £37.00, with the
same fee on each renewal, at ten yearly intervals.
The set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's), below, are
provided by the
DCMS
website.
Note: Clicking on a link will open
the answer in a new window.
Environmental Health & Licensing
South Staffordshire Council
Codsall
WV8 1PX
Telephone: (01902) 696804
Email: Licensing@sstaffs.gov.uk