Issue - meetings

The Committee to consider a report proposing a review of the Cumulative Effect Policy.

The Committee considered a report which was set out on agenda pages 7-33.  The report was seeking Members’ views in relation to a possible review of the Council’s Licensing Policy in respect to the addition of a Cumulative Impact Policy for the specific area of Remenham.

Paul Anstey, Joint Service Delivery Manager, West Berkshire and Wokingham, explained that the cumulative impact of the high number of events held in the Henley area had been a reoccurring issue over the years.  The residents had requested the consideration of a Cumulative Impact Policy (CIP) relating to future premises licence applications on the river land in the Parish of Remenham from Henley Bridge to Temple Island.

Officers were seeking the Committees’ approval to commission an external review of evidence, to be carried out by legal experts, to support or not the adoption of the CIP.  Paul felt it was necessary to address this issue through the correct mechanism and this report was the first step towards a formal review of the possible adoption of a CIP.  The results of this independent review would be brought back to the Committee for discussion.

Paul informed Members that this was not the first time that this issue had been considered by the Licensing and Appeals Committee; however it remained a concern to local residents.  Paul stated that the geography of the area meant this would be an unusual CIP if compared to other areas in the country. The circumstances were very specific to the Remenham area, it related to a number of licences issued alongside each other throughout the year, and not to specific permanent premises.

During the discussion of the item the following points were made:

·           Councillor Smith asked if this policy would encompass the whole Borough or if it would be applied just to Remenham.  Paul’s view was that the policy would be attached to the whole borough but it would be applied to Remenham specifically.  Should another area request its implementation, this would be reviewed individually;

·           The Chairman stated that from his research, he was uncertain that the policy would encompass the whole Borough.  Paul stated that this was something the experts involved in the review would be able to clarify;

·           The Chairman asked for clarity from a legal perspective on the scope of the policy;

·           Some Members suggested that the policy could include appendixes for different areas in the Borough;

·           Paul explained that the way in which licences were issued at the moment meant that Officers could not take into account the number of existing licences in the area.  The CIP would provide a mechanism to take that into account when issuing new licences;

·           In response to a question, Julia O’Brien, Acting Team Manager Licensing stated that there were altogether around 13-14 days in the year when events were held in the Henley area;

·           Some Members were of the view that the Council should not spend money carrying out this review as it only affected one area of the Borough  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13