Agenda and minutes

Councillor Clare Jeapes welcomed everyone to the meeting and Officers and members introduced themselves. The procedure for the conduct of the meeting was outlined.

There were no apologies for absence.

There were no substitute members.

If you have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest* in an item of business:

§  if it is not yet on the council’s register, you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent;

§  you may choose to declare a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest that is already in the register in the interests of openness and transparency. 

In both the above cases, you must leave the room without participating in discussion of the item.

If you have a personal interest in an item of business and you intend to speak or vote on the item you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent but you may participate in the discussion and vote on the item.

*(a)Employment, etc - Any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation carried on for profit or gain.

(b) Sponsorship - Any payment or other financial benefit in respect of your expenses in carrying out duties as a member, or of your election; including from a trade union.

(c) Contracts - Any current contract for goods, services or works, between you or your partner (or a body in which one of you has a beneficial interest) and the council.

(d) Land - Any beneficial interest in land which is within the council’s area.

(e) Licences- Any licence to occupy land in the council’s area for a month or longer.

(f) Corporate tenancies - Any tenancy between the council and a body in which you or your partner have a beneficial interest.

 (g) Securities - Any beneficial interest in securities of a body which has a place of business or land in the council’s area, if the total nominal value of the securities exceeds £25,000 or one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that body or of any one class of its issued share capital. 

This applies to all members present at the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

The order of business would be as per the agenda.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on the 6 August 2024 be confirmed as a correct record and the Chair be authorised to sign them.

The Licensing Officer was asked to report any additional updates to the Sub-Committee. In response, the Sub-Committee was informed that supporting documentation had been forwarded to all parties. The existing premises licence was provided to the Sub-Committee ahead of the meeting as this was omitted form the papers. There were representations made by a resident, but they were not able to make it to the meeting. The Sub-Committee noted that no other representations were made.

The Sub-Committee noted that the applicant would need a new planning application first to the Council to amend the planning condition No.11 on a permanent basis so that the hours of opening of the bar/café were increased to 23:00 hours. This was because the increase in hours for alcohol consumption at the café to 23:00 hours would be contrary to Page 10 condition No.11 of the original planning permission.

The applicant presented their key points and stated that the premises was a drama school with commercial operating theatre. The theatre put on productions and prioritised working with underrepresented groups. Theatre shows would typically go on until 9:30/10pm. It was noted that the bar and café drove income to support the production team. The theatre was also used by local communities including local schools. The applicant stated that there was also an opportunity where they could provide more events and bring different groups of people together, particularly residents.

The Sub-Committee noted that the applicant did not initially apply for a planning permission to amend the planning condition No.11 of the original planning permission. The applicant advised that the cost of this was high and the applicant wanted to know if a licence variation could be granted without new planning permission. The applicant mentioned that if there was a need to seek for planning permission, then they would choose not to extend the opening hours for the bar/café.

In response to a question, it was noted that the theatre was not catered specifically to younger people and the target audience was young adults between 18 -25 years of age.

In response to a question regarding the dispersal policy, it was noted that there was a staggered approach to dispersal with around 10 patrons leaving the premises at a time. It was also noted that the bar/café would be closed at that time and there would be an additional member of staff allocated to overlook orderly dispersal of customers.

The Sub-Committee noted that the dispersal policy stated that there would be 30 minutes before closing time to allow patrons time to finish their drinks and prepare to leave. The applicant agreed to the suggested additional condition of “The sale of alcohol shall cease 30 minutes before the premises close to allow for orderly dispersal.” This new condition would need to be added to the licence.

In summing up, the applicant stated that they wanted to create a safe space for creators in the Finsbury Park area. Applicant also added that they would like to work collaboratively  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.