Information and Evidence Submitted to assist the Hounslow Licensing Panel.

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Information and Evidence

  Submitted to assist the Hounslow Licensing Panel.

   Premises Licence Application [KFC Restaurant and
                             Take-away]

       Monday the 20th of January 2020 at 7:30 pm.

Premises Name:         KFC

Premises Address:      KFC,172 High Street, Hounslow, TW3 lBQ.

Date                   14th of January 2020.

Reference:             C3C - HC Hounslow HS

Report Prepared by:    Geoffrey P. Cooper   i

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Introduction

Heathplace Limited, a company holding a Kentucky Fried Chicken Franchise, has submitted
this application to compliment the considerable investment that the company has made at
this site in the Town Centre at Hounslow.

Having operated as a KFC for approximately two years, the applicant is seeking to obtain a
Premises Licence for this site, which will allow Late Night Refreshment, in the same way as a
number of its other KFC sites.

The application.

On the 2l5t of October 2019 a consultation email was sent to the Responsible Authorities
and the Licensing Authority outlining the proposed Premises Licence application on behalf
of the applicant.

This application was submitted in November 2019 and the operating schedule has been
carefully worded to reflect the intention to run a responsible late night premises at this site.

Considering the Hounslow Statement of Licensing Policy, the applicant fully understands the
Licensing Authority's policy approach, aimed at ensuring the balance of premises and hours
within Hounslow, maintaining the amenity of residents whilst supporting the commercial
development of the area in a way that supports fully the Licensing Objectives in the
Licensing Act 2003.

The applicant believes that they have offered a number of statements in section M of the
application demonstrating a genuine commitment to support the Licensing Objectives in
full.

The applicant has obtained an agreement as to Premises Licence conditions with the
Metropolitan Police, should the Premises Licence be granted, including a reduction in the
Authorised Hours originally suggested.

National licensing policy

The Secretary of State's Guidance under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003 states:-

Crime and disorder

2.1 'Licensing authorities should look to the police as the main source of advice on crime and
disorder           '

The applicant would like to point out that the Metropolitan Police have entered into an
agreement in relation to this application and the Licensing Authority is invited to assume
that if the Police had anticipated significant detrimental effects on the Licensing Objectives,
particularly The Prevention of Crime and Disorder and The Prevention of Public Nuisance,
they would have made these clear by presenting representations to the Panel.

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Local Statement of Licensing Policy

Heathplace Limited has carefully considered the Hounslow licensing policy under the
following headings and the company believes that the conditions offered in the Operating
Schedule and the high standard of management, security measures, fixtures and fittings
required by Kentucky Fried Chicken in the construction and operation of the of the
restaurant address fully these policy matters.

lt is worthy of note that the applicant has a waste removal contract and comprehensive
litter picking programme in place at this site.

Applications
3.3 '... applicants are encouraged to discuss their proposals in advance with the Police. lt may be
beneficial to draw on the experience of the Police in relation particularly to the prevention of crime
and disorder.'

3.4 When making an application, applicants should have regard to the local area and reflect this in
their operating schedule.

Operating Schedules

6.2 ln respect of each of the four licensing objectives, applicants will be expected to
provide evidence to the licensing Authority that suitable and sufficient measures,
as detailed in their operating schedule, will be implemented and maintained,
relevant to the individual style and characteristics of their premises and events.

Prevention of Crime and Disorder

7.2 When addressing the issue of crime and disorder, the applicant should be able to demonstrate
that those factors that impact on crime and disorder have been considered. These factors include:

• Anti-social behaviour

7.3 Examples of control measures are highlighted below, to assist applicants, who may need to take
account of them in their operating schedule, having regard to their particular type of premises
and/or activities:
• Effective and responsible management of the premises;
 • Training and supervision of staff;

•   Provision of effective CCTV in and around the premises;
•   Employment of Security Industry Agency (SIA} door staff;
•   Provision of litter bins;
•   Provision of security measures such as outside lighting

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The Prevention of Public Nuisance

9.6 When addressing the issue of the prevention of public nuisance, the applicant must demonstrate
to the licensing authority that those factors, which impact upon the likelihood of public nuisance,
have been considered. These may include:

• The location of the premises and its proximity to residential and other noise sensitive premises such
as hospitals, hospices and places of worship;
 • The hours of opening, particularly between 23.00 hours and 07.00 hours;

9.8 Noise may often be created by patrons and/or their modes of transport arriving and leaving
licensed premises, or from machinery or vehicles belonging to the licence holders business, refuse
collection and deliveries. Discarding of wrappers, bottles, cans and general litter may also present
problems in relation to particular premises. Whilst not in themselves a licensable activity, there may
be occasion (such as in residential areas) where these factors are taken into account as part of the
determination process and conditions may be imposed.

Conditions
12.4 Conditions will only be placed on licences if they are considered appropriate to meet the
licensing objectives. Duplication caused by licence conditions that are dealt with by means of other
legislation, for example health and safety at work or fire safety, will be avoided. Conditions will only
be attached to premises licences and club premises certificates that are appropriate for the
promotion of the licensing objectives if not already provided for in other legislation

12.5 The Licensing Authority acknowledges that the licensing function cannot be used for the
general control of anti-social behaviour of individuals once beyond the direct control of the
licensee of any premises concerned.

 However, it should be noted that the licensee bears a degree of responsibility for persons not only in
but also around the immediate vicinity of the premise, when those persons are either entering or
exiting the licensed premise, or are loitering within the boundary of the premise.

Other mechanisms     may be utilised where appropriate to tackle unruly or unlawful behaviour of
customers when beyond the control of the individual business that holds the licence, certificate or
authorisation concerned. These include:
• Planning controls;
 • Positive measures to create a safe and clean town environment in partnership with local
businesses, transport operators and other departments of the local authority;
• The provision of CCTV surveillance in and around the Borough, provision of public conveniences,
street cleaning and litter patrols;
• Powers of the loco/ authority or police to designate parts of the Borough as areas where alcohol
may not be consumed publicly;
• Police enforcement of the general law concerning disorder and anti-social behaviour, including the
issuing offixed penalty notices;
• The prosecution of any personal licence holder or member of staff at such premises that is selling
alcohol to people who are drunk;
 • The confiscation of alcohol from adults and children in designated areas;

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• Police and local authority powers to close down instantly for up to 24 hours 22 any licensed
premises or temporary events on grounds of disorder, the likelihood of disorder, or noise emanating
from the premises that is causing a nuisance; and
• The power of the police, other responsible authorities or local residents and businesses to seek a
review of the licence or certificate in question. Many of these activities are channelled through the
community safety partnership that takes a wider view of such problems on a Borough wide basis.

Cumulative Impact (Special Policy) Area

Whilst it is accepted that the premises is within the special policy area set out in the local
statement of Licensing policy, the Licensing Authority has made no representation. Only a
single representation has been made by a local resident.

The applicant wishes to emphasise that the CCTV system, staff training and the inclusion of
the relevant Mandatory Conditions under the Act [relating to Security Staff], are accepted as
part of the Operating Schedule.

Heathplace Limited genuinely considers this proposal to be 'Low Risk' in relation to the
Licensing Objectives, based on the size and character of the premises and that the Premises
Licence, if granted, will not add to the cumulative impact on the Licensing Objectives in the
Licensing Act 2003 in this area.

The Representations

The s182 Guidance to the Licensing Act 2003 states

9.36 As a matter of practice, licensing authorities should seek to focus the hearing on the steps
considered appropriate to promote the particular licensing objective or objectives that have given
rise to the specific representation and avoid straying into undisputed areas .

The single representation against the proposal relates mainly to the Prevention of Public
Nuisance licensing objective.

Other matters are mentioned, however, the resident seems to anticipate that noise
nuisance will increase if the proposal is accepted. The applicant does not accept this.

The applicant would continue to run the business in the same way as they have done for the
last two years.

Mr H Jivraj met with Ms. Wilford in December 2019 and discussed the issues that she had
raised, as follows:

1. The applicant does not accept responsibility for the matters raised here, however they
     do not wish, in any way, to minimise the concerns of local residents and will do
     everything possible to support the Licensing Objectives, should a premises licence be
     granted.
2.   The applicant discussed this issue with Ms Wilford and expressed the view that there are
     a number of sites that open after 7pm, including Thakers restaurant, the Casino, Subway
     and other nearby premises.

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3. The applicant maintains that all the other nearby restaurants are using delivery drivers
     who park and pass through Holloway Street. KFC have made it clear to all their delivery
     drivers that they should not park in Holloway Street and management will reinforce this
     message with delivery drivers on a daily basis.
4. The construction of the nearby flats has made it difficult to schedule food deliveries
     from KFC suppliers, however the applicant has made it clear to delivery drivers that they
     should take extra care to keep noise to a minimum. The applicant's staff clean their part
     of the rear yard daily and also ensure that the KFC bins are washed daily.
S.   Unfortunately, the applicant has identified some nuisance being caused by the rubbish
     left by residents in nearby flats - this has been brought to the attention of the Council.
6. The applicant has agreed not to take out bins after 8pm with Ms Wilford and she
     accepted this in good faith.
7. As point 6
8.   Mr Jivraj identified the fact that Ms Wilford in fact walks past the bins belonging to
     Thakers Restaurant every day and not KFC bins and this was discussed with her at the
     meeting.

Overall the applicant has taken all possible steps to address the concerns of Ms. Wilford, as
far as they relate to the operation of the KFC site.

lt appears that Ms Wilford is suffering some noise nuisance and other issues relating to the
construction of the flats to the rear of the KFC site and some of the other food premises
operating nearby.

Whilst these matters are of great concern to Ms Wilford, it is respectfully pointed out that
they are not related to the operation of the KFC restaurant.

The applicant is very willing to receive comments from local residents and to work in
partnership to resolve any local issues that may arise in the course of business for this KFC
restaurant.

Conclusion

The applicant, Heathplace Limited, has submitted this carefully prepared licence application
for Late Night Refreshment only.

The applicant believes that they have carefully assessed the likely impact of the premises
licence application and believe that they can fully support the Licensing Objectives in the
Licensing Act 2003.

The applicant has complied with the local statement of licensing policy and proposed
comprehensive conditions for the premises licence, obtaining an agreement with the
Metropolitan Police covering the specific wording of conditions for the premises licence,
should it be granted.

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No 'policy' representation has been received from the Licensing Authority, or other parties
    to the process, in respect of this application.

    The response of the applicant to the representation received in this case is to reiterate that
    in addition to the above points, the premises is managed and constructed to a high standard
    and will not contribute to the Cumulative Impact on the Licensing Objectives in this area.

    The applicant is committed to support fully the licensing objectives in the Licensing Act 2003
    and the members of the Hounslow Licensing Panel are respectfully requested to grant the
    application for this premises licence with any premises licence conditions that they consider
    appropriate.

    G.P. Cooper (Licensing Consultant)

    Heathplace Limited.

i   Geoff Cooper - experience, qualifications and professional practice.

Geoff has completed a combination of 30 years police service with Sussex Police and latterly the MPS in November 2014.He
has a wide variety of experience including rural, suburban and city policing in uniform and investigative roles. He has held
specialist roles in airport policing and riot control and has been a licensing officer since 1996.

He has managed small teams (up to 10 officers) since 2003, also having experience of managing 50 officers in whole
Borough response policing for 18 months 2005-2006. He is a qualified crime prevention officer, a member of the Institute of
Leadership and Management, and an affiliate of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives.

He has several licensing qualifications, including a Licensing Practitioner's certificate with the Institute of Licensing. He is a
long-term member of the Institute of Licensing and is currently the treasurer of the IOL London Region.

He has considerable experience of crime reduction and partnership initiatives across the licensed sector (Best Bar None and
Pubwatch/Business Improvement Districts) as well as the stepped approach to enforcement/prosecution and all/ aspects of
the Licensing Act 2003 process from application to Review. He is qualified as a trainer in the Lifelong Learning sector.

Since December 2014 he has worked with a variety of clients, including KFC, MacDonald's, TL T Solicitors and Cornerstone
Barristers to provide expertise in Compliance, Crime Prevention, Licence Reviews and Licensing applications.

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