Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Edge.

The Chair will consider the admission of any late items of urgent business. Late items will be considered under the agenda item where they appear. It being a special meeting of the Committee, under Part Four, Section B, Paragraph 17 of the Council’s Constitution, no other business shall be considered at the meeting.

There were no items of urgent business.

A member with a personal interest in a matter who attends a meeting of the authority at which the matter is considered must disclose to that meeting the existence and nature of that interest at he commencement of that consideration, or when the interest becomes apparent.

A member with a personal interest in a matter also has a prejudicial interest in that matter if the interest is one which a member of the public with knowledge of the relevant facts would reasonably regard as so significant that it is likely to prejudice the member’s judgement of the public interest and if this interest affects their financial position or the financial position of a person or body as described in paragraph 8 of the Code of Conduct and/or if it relates to the determining of any approval, consent, licence, permission or registration in relation to them or any person or body described in paragraph 8 of the Code of Conduct.

Cllr Reid declared a personal interest as a member and volunteer at a church in the vicinity of the site, and as a parent of a pupil at nearby Rokesley School.

Cllr Thompson declared a personal interest as he had performed as a musician at the venue two or three years previously.

The Chair will explain the procedure that the Committee will follow for the hearing considered under the Licensing Act 2003 or Gambling Act 2005.  A copy of the procedure is attached.

NOTED

To consider an application to extend the hours for sale of alcohol and regulated entertainment and late night refreshment and to enable lap dancing to be provided on the premises.

It being a special meeting of the Committee, under Part Four, Section B, Paragraph 17 of the Council’s Constitution, no other business shall be considered at the meeting.

At the start of the hearing, the Chair requested a brief definition of the terms lap- and table-dancing. The applicant’s representative provided a definition as the performance of dance at the side of a customer’s table involving the removal of clothing, usually for a duration of around 3 minutes and in which the customer does not participate. The performance would involve the dancer collecting money or tokens. In response to a question from the Committee regarding the nature of the tokens, it was clarified that these were to remove the need for performers to hold money whilst in the club. Customers would buy tokens in advance and then spend them during the performance of dance; the performers would then exchange the tokens received for money.

The Committee asked about the employment status of the performers, and it was reported that dancers were self-employed; clubs either charged a fee for dancers to perform at the club, or charged commission on the money earned. In response to questions from the Committee regarding the management of risk in relation to the performers’ safety, the applicant’s representative responded that all dancers were briefed in safety arrangements and that security were in place at the venue to manage the conduct of customers, ensure performers and customers were kept separate, deal with any issues that arose and escort the performers to their transport home at the end of the evening. It was also reported that venues were equipped with CCTV.

The Committee asked for clarification of the difference between table-dancing, lap-dancing and private booth dancing. The applicant’s representative reported that table dancing took place by the side of a customer’s table, lap dancing involved the performer dancing towards the customer into their lap and private booth dancing was a performance taking place in a private area, not in view of other customers in the venue. It was confirmed that the application under consideration did not include any provision of private booths.

The Chair outlined the procedure to be followed at the hearing.

The Licensing Officer, Ms Dale Barrett, presented the report on the application for a variation of a premises licence to extend the hours for sale of alcohol, regulated entertainment and late night refreshment and to enable lap dancing to be provided on the premises. The Licensing Officer reported that the hours applied for the performance of dance had been amended from those set out in the report, to 1800 to 0200, Monday to Saturday. The Noise Team had submitted representation in respect of the application, and these had been agreed with the applicant. A large number of letters of representation had been received from local residents, expressing concerns relating to noise nuisance, the negative impact on public safety and the proximity to sensitive locations such as schools, youth groups, the YMCA and places of worship. Extracts from the Licensing Policy and Government guidance were also appended to the report for information.

The Committee asked about parking provision in the area, and it was reported  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.