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Agenda and draft minutes

Venue: Council Chambers Witney

Contact: Democratic Services 

Items
No. Item

15.

Minutes of Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 66 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 16 February 2023.

 

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 February 2023 were approved and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

16.

Declarations of Interest.

To receive any declarations from Members of the Committee on any items to be considered at the meeting.

 

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest received.

17.

Apologies of Absence.

To receive any apologies of absence.

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Councillors Brooker and Aitman.

18.

Application For a Variation to a Premises Licence - Merriscourt Gallery pdf icon PDF 208 KB

Purpose.

To determine a variation to a  premises licence application made by Mr Thomas Astor in regards to the premises Merriscourt Gallery.

 

Recommendation.

That the Licensing Sub-Committee is asked, in light of the representations received, to consider the application and determine whether to:-

·         grant the application as requested;

·         grant the application subject to such conditions that are necessary to promote the licencing objectives;

·         refuse the application in whole or in part where it is necessary in order to promote the licensing objectives.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair Councillor Jackson welcomed everyone to the hearing and introduced the Panel in attendance, Councillors MacRae and Parkinson.

 

The Chair asked for the Officers in attendance to introduce themselves, Andrea Thomas introduced herself as the Licensing Officer, Alexander Kirk introduced himself as the Legal Officer, and Rick Downham introduced himself as the Environmental Health Officer.

 

Following introductions the Chair asked those who wished to speak that were in attendance to introduce themselves.

 

Emily Ricks , General Manager of Merriscourt Gallery on behalf of the Applicant.

Mr Tom Astor, owner of Merriscourt Gallery on behalf of the Applicant.

 

Mr Howard Sherwood, identified himself as an observer to the meeting. Mr Sherwood had also made representations in Annex D as a local resident.

 

The Chair outlined the process the hearing would follow and explained that the Panel would be advised by the Council’s Legal Adviser, and Committee Clerk.

 

The Chair reminded all parties to highlight only issues that relate to the Licensing

 

Objectives should be considered that being

 

·       The prevention of crime and disorder

·       Public Safety

·       The prevention of public nuisance

·       The protection of children from harm

 

The Chair announced that the Panel were in attendance to consider an application for a variation to a premises licence application made by Mr Thomas Astor in regards to the Merriscourt Gallery premises.

 

The Licensing Officer, Andrea Thomas outlined the application, which considered an application for a variation to a premises licence application made by Mr Thomas Astor in regards to the premises Merriscourt Gallery. The Applicant had applied to extend the opening hours at the beginning of the day and to remove a condition on the current licence, to allow amplified music in the courtyard area. The Officer confirmed there had been objections from local residents covered in Annex D of the report. Conditions suggested by the Environmental Health Officer were detailed in the report as follows;

·       The provision of any live and recorded music outdoors shall be restricted to the courtyard and gallery garden areas and shall cease at 23.00 hours prompt. This condition had been agreed by the applicant and would form part of the licence if the application were to be approved.

 

The Panel were asked to consider the application and to determine whether to:

 

·       Grant the application as requested;

·       Grant the application subject to such conditions that are necessary to promote the licensing objectives;

·       Refuse the application in whole or in part where it is necessary in order to promote licensing objectives.

 

The Chair then invited Mr Astor to address the panel.

 

Mr Astor addressed the Panel, giving an overview of the reason he had applied to vary the current licence. He explained that he would like to streamline his office administration due to currently having to apply for a Temporary Events Notice. The variation would allow for alcohol to be served after wedding receptions and for music to be played at the drinks reception. Mr Astor also explained that he would like to move the times he is  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.