Agenda and minutes

Councillor Singh Johal was appointed as Chair and led on introductions.

There were no apologies for absence.

Members are asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed.

There were no declarations of interest made.

The Director for Neighbourhoods and Environmental Services submits a Report for an application for a variation to an existing premises licence for Sophy, 8-10 King Street, Leicester.

Councillor Singh Johal, as Chair welcomed all to the Committee and outlined

the proceedings of the hearing.

The Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submitted a report

on an application for a variation of an existing premises licence for Sophy, 9-10 King Street, Leicester.

The Licensing Team Manager (Policy and Applications) presented the report and outlined details of the application.

The Applicant Mr Jai Dillon Kumar was in attendance. Also in attendance was Mr Jefferson Pritchard, Police Constable for Leicestershire Police, Councillor Patrick Kitterick, Castle Ward and Roger Dickinson. Also present was the Chief Licensing Officer and the Legal Adviser to the Sub-Committee.

A representation was received on 13 September 2023 from an interested party. The representation related to the prevention of crime and disorder and the prevention of public nuisance. The representee was concerned that the variation application, if granted could increase late night disturbance and crime and disorder in the local area.

A second representation was received on 21 September 2023 from a member of the public  The representation related to the prevention of public nuisance.  The representee was concerned that they were frequently disturbed by customers leaving Sophy late at night and that this variation would exacerbate that problem.

A third representation was received on 27 September 2023 from Leicestershire Police. The representation related to the prevention of crime and disorder, the prevention of public nuisance, public safety and the protection of children from harm. The representee was concerned that throughout 2022, there were a number of incidents directly related to the premises. A previous variation application was refused in June 2023. The representee mentioned that incidents relating to the premises had since reduced. They had proposed conditions to be attached to the licence, if granted and had reached agreement with the applicant regarding the conditions.

The Licensing Team Manager (Policy and Applications) addressed the Sub-Committee and outlined details of the representation and answered questions from Members.

Mr Jefferson Pritchard, Police Constable for Leicestershire Police, was given the opportunity to outline the details of the representation from the Police and answered questions from Members of the Sub-Committee and Officers.

Councillor Kitterick, Castle Ward was given the opportunity to outline the details of their representation and answered questions from Members of the Sub-Committee.

Mr Dickinson was given the opportunity to outline the details of the representation and answered questions from Members of the Sub-Committee.

The applicant, Mr Jai Dillon Kumar was given the opportunity to address the Sub-Committee and answered questions from the Members and Officers.

All parties present were then given the opportunity to sum up their positions and make any final comments.

The Sub-Committee received legal advice from the Legal Adviser to the Sub-Committee in the presence of all those present and were advised of the options available to them in making their decision. The Sub-Committee were also advised of the relevant policy and statutory guidance that needed to be taken into account when making their decision.

In reaching their decision, Members felt they should  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

With there being no further business, the hearing closed at 3.24pm.