Councillors unanimously backed changing Brighton and Hove’s licensing policy, with a focus on safety and “good operators”.
The changes to Brighton and Hove City Council’s “statement of licensing policy” were two and a half years in the making, according to the chair of the council’s Licensing Committee, Labour councillor David McGregor.
He said today (Thursday 6 November) that when he was “night-time economy lead” he spent a year going out and talking to venues and customers to understand people’s views about the nightlife in Brighton and Hove.
Councillor McGregor said: “There was a real concern that licensing was a bit too strict, a bit too overbearing. I would disagree on some points but that was the feeling.
“I wanted to go with a new approach to what the new strategy would be and the things we would bring forward.
“This proposal that went to consultation is probably the biggest change to licensing in the city since the Licensing Act in 2003.”
Changes include a “good operator policy”, recognising grassroots music venues as a category of premises and the creation of a “city safety area” (CSA).
The proposed new CSA would replace the cumulative impact zone (CIZ) where there are restrictions on new alcohol-led venues and late-night businesses.
The safety-first approach is expected to include door policies that should mean that vulnerable people are not just ejected on to the street.
And it would mean vulnerability training to support LGBTQ+ people – those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning community. The measures are also aimed at preventing violence against women and girls.
Councillor McGregor said that he was concerned that people did not feel safe when out in Brighton and Hove even though he believes that it is a safe place.
He said: “We’ve brought these new changes around safe bouncers, every venue having a spiking policy, a real onus when we do (licensing) panels on how you keep people safe and changing the way we work as a licensing committee.”
The good operator policy will allow venue owners to secure variations to their licences if they have had no interventions for five years.
Councillor McGregor said: “Five years is a good investment in our city, for us to say ‘you get preferential treatment’. That’s a nice amount of time that they’ve given back to this city.
“Most of the people within the city that make our nightlife and our city so brilliant have been here for a long period of time.”
Labour councillor Sam Parrott asked why a quarter of the people who responded to the public consultation objected to the good operator policy.
She was told that this was because some wanted it themselves and others raised concerns that loosening rules would affect anti-social behaviour.
Councillor McGregor said: “The results have shown people are supportive of safe good operators in this city being given some preferential treatment.”
Labour councillor Julie Cattell, who was involved in formulating the new policy, said that the licensing policy needed to reflect the changes in people’s habits when they went out and particularly specialist venues such as microbreweries.
Councillor Cattell said: “The change in what people do when they go out – and not so many people going to clubs any more – we wanted to reflect that in what we were doing. I think we’ve done that with this proposal.
“And safety first, having heard some horrendous stories about the way young women are treated if door people think they have had a few too many.”
Green councillor Ollie Sykes asked about smaller live music venues and was told that having more categories for venues, such as grassroots music venues, would mean there was not a “presumption of refusal” as there would be for a new pub or night club.
The committee voted unanimously in favour of the policy which will be considered at a meeting of the full council on Thursday 18 December.
