An apology for absence was received from Cllr William Lambert and Cllr Patricia Oakeshott attended as his substitute.

The Minutes of the meeting held on 17 November 2010 were signed by the Chairman.

No declarations of interest were made.

PC Anthony Ilott from North Kent Police advised Members that their main priority for 2011/12 is to continue to patrol the Town Centre on a Friday and Saturday evening to assess the night time economy and to monitor licensed premises.

The Committee was informed that the current arrangements in place work well and that North Kent Police benefit from and have an excellent working relationship with Gravesham Borough Council’s Licensing Section.

It was noted that North Kent Police are currently pursuing the opportunity to have a mobile police station located within the Town Centre on a Friday or Saturday evening on an intermittent basis.

Members were invited to raise any questions that they may have.

The Committee thanked North Kent Police for its continuous hard work within the borough.

The Senior Environmental Health Officer gave a presentation on Statutory Noise Nuisance and Licensing.

The main topics covered by the presentation were:-

• Legislation;
• What does it all mean?
• Investigating noise from licensed premises (in the office);
• Out of Hours (OOH) Service;
• Dealing with Noise from Licensed Premises.

The Committee thanked the Senior Environmental Health Officer for an interesting and informative presentation.

The Committee was apprised of the steps taken in setting the fees for sex establishments and sexual entertainment venues.

Members were informed that a local authority can charge either the same fee or different fees for different types of applications and may seek to recoup the full cost, or part only, of administering the licensing scheme.

When setting the fees authorities were encouraged to only take relevant factors into account.  These factors can include not only the direct costs of processing an individual application but also the costs of providing an effective licensing service and subsequent enforcement.  The licence fees that are set must be proportionate to the effective cost of the licensing procedure and must not be used as an economic deterrent or to raise funds.

The report detailed a summary of the stages and the average time expected to be spent in processing and dealing with an application using an hourly rate (with on costs applied) together with the fees currently set by other local authorities in Kent and country wide.

The Senior Licensing Officer stated that the following fees which will take effect from 1 April 2011, were set by the Assistant Director (Communities) in consultation with the Assistant Director (Transformation & Finance) for all categories of sex establishments and sexual entertainment venues:-

·         application fee £2,510;

·         renewal/Transfer/Variation fee £1,320.

            Resolved that the report be noted.

Minutes of meeting held on Monday 29 November 2010 – copy herewith.

Minutes of meeting held on Friday 4 March 2011 – to be circulated.

The Committee received the Minutes of the Licensing Panels held on Monday 29 November 2010 and Friday 4 March 2011.

Resolved that the Minutes be noted.

The Chairman advised that this was his last meeting as Chairman of the Committee.

Members thanked the Chairman for his good service in support of this Committee and Gravesham Borough Council.