Are You Compliant? A Licensing Checklist for Licensed Premises
Could your licensed premises pass a compliance inspection today?
If the police, licensing authority or another authorised officer visited, could your managers quickly produce the correct documents and demonstrate that the business is operating within its premises licence?
Holding a premises licence is only the beginning. Its permitted activities, hours and conditions must be converted into working procedures that staff understand and follow.
Even a seemingly small mistake could expose the business to enforcement action and, in serious or repeated cases, a review of the premises licence.
Watch: Are You Compliant?
If the police, licensing authority or another authorised officer visited, could your managers quickly produce the correct documents and demonstrate that the business is operating within its premises licence?
In this Click2Comply video, we examine the main areas licensed-premises operators should review before an inspection or serious incident.
Start with the premises licence
Your compliance review should begin with the licence itself.
Check that:
The premises licence holder is correct
The designated premises supervisor is current
The licence summary is properly displayed
The complete licence or certified copy is available
The annual licence fee has been paid
The premises plan reflects the licensed area
Relevant managers can access and understand the licence
These details are particularly important after a change of company, operator, business owner or designated premises supervisor.
Do not assume an application or transfer has been completed. Retain confirmation and updated licensing documents.
Understand what your licence permits
Managers should understand exactly what activities are authorised, including:
Alcohol sales
Live and recorded music
Late-night refreshment
Regulated entertainment
Permitted operating hours
Seasonal variations
Outside areas and beer gardens
Restrictions affecting events
The premises should not provide an activity simply because it has done so previously.
The activity, location and time must be properly authorised.
Where the business has changed how it operates, the premises licence and approved
plan should be reviewed to determine whether a variation is required.
Turn every licence condition into a working control
Premises-licence conditions are enforceable requirements. They should not remain buried in a document that employees never see.
A licence might contain conditions concerning:
CCTV
Door supervisors
Incident records
Refusal records
Searches
Capacity
Noise monitoring
Outside areas
Customer dispersal
Staff training
Challenge 25
Notices and signage
For every condition, managers should establish:
What must happen?
Who is responsible?
When must it happen?
Which employees need to know?
What evidence must be retained?
How will management check compliance?
A condition is only effective when people understand and consistently apply it.
Control every sale of alcohol
Alcohol sales must be appropriately authorised, and relevant employees should understand:
Who has authorised them to sell alcohol
The premises age-verification policy
Which identification is acceptable
How to refuse a sale safely
How refusals should be recorded
When a manager should intervene
The rules concerning proxy sales
The prohibition on sales to intoxicated people
Licensed premises selling alcohol must operate an age-verification policy. Many businesses use Challenge 25 as a stronger operating standard.
Staff should receive appropriate training before they are permitted to make alcohol sales, with evidence of that training retained.
Keep records that demonstrate active management
Good records can help demonstrate that the premises is properly managed.
Depending on the licence and operating model, these could include:
Alcohol-sale authorisations
Staff-training records
Refusal records
Incident reports
CCTV checks
Door-supervisor records
Search records
Capacity checks
Noise-monitoring records
Customer complaints
Official visit records
Management reviews
Records should be current, accessible and reviewed regularly.
Completing a log is not enough if management never examines it. Reviews can identify repeated incidents, recurring refusals, vulnerable customers, problem times and weaknesses in existing controls.
Promote the four licensing objectives
Every premises should operate with a view to promoting the four licensing objectives.
Prevention of crime and disorder
Consider violence, drugs, theft, disorder, ejections, searches, security and incident escalation.
Public safety
Consider capacity, emergency procedures, customer welfare, evacuation and the management of vulnerable people.
Prevention of public nuisance
Consider noise, outside areas, deliveries, smoking areas, dispersal and neighbour complaints.
Protection of children from harm
Consider age verification, access restrictions, supervision, safeguarding and exposure to unsuitable activities.
Problems connected to one or more of these objectives can potentially lead to a review of the premises licence.
Are your staff prepared for an official visit?
Employees should know what to do when the police or licensing authority visits.
They should understand:
Who to notify
How to contact the DPS or duty manager
Where the premises licence is kept
Where compliance records are stored
How to provide appropriate assistance
How to record the visit and any action required
Employees should not guess answers or provide information they do not understand. They should refer the officer to the appropriate manager.
Get your free Licensing Compliance Checklist
Click2Comply has created a free Licensed Premises Licensing Compliance Checklist to help you review your current arrangements.
The checklist allows you to:
Complete 16 compliance checks
Select Yes, Partly or No
Calculate a score out of 32
Identify possible gaps
Create a priority action plan
Could your premises pass a compliance check?
How Click2Comply can help
Click2Comply provides accessible online training and practical compliance resources for pubs, bars, restaurants, nightclubs, off-licences and other licensed premises.
Our training helps businesses:
Deliver consistent staff learning
Retain evidence of course completion
Improve licensing awareness
Strengthen inspection readiness
Organise compliance records
Access practical checklists, policies and management tools
Explore our training and compliance resources at Click2Comply.
For premises-licence applications, variations, reviews and specialist consultancy, visit Licensing Professionals.
Are You Compliant? A Licensing Checklist for Licensed Premises
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This article, Are You Compliant? A Licensing Checklist for Licensed Premises- provides general information for licensed premises in England and Wales. Always check your premises licence, licence conditions, current legislation, local licensing policy and premises-specific professional advice.
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