(a)

this was the third enforcement activity report provided to the Committee;

(b)

in 2010 a three year licensing policy review was undertaken, this amended policy would form a framework for licensing decisions to be made; the Gambling Fees annual report was also completed;

(c)

officers had conducted a test purchase operation in October 2010 designed to test gambling establishments and their ability to restrict underage individuals from using age restricted gambling machines in their premises;

(d)

in the test purchasing operation for gambling establishments 24 premises were visited over a two day period; seven operators and four betting shops were found to allow underage individuals to gamble on age restricted machines. These premises were subsequently visited and steps put in place to prevent this from reoccurring;

(e)

the test purchasing operation for gambling premises was undertaken with the knowledge of the Gambling Commission; the Commission received the report and operation very favorably and stated that this was the second largest operation to have taken place in the country;

(f)

a draft Sex Establishment Policy was launched for public consultation on 20 January 2011; full Council would have the opportunity to ratify the policy;

(g)

Councillors of the Licensing Committee (Miscellaneous) gave permission for a public consultation to take place regarding a Designated Public Places Order (DPPO) for Freedom Fields and Tothill Park; the consultation and accompanying report would be submitted to the Licensing Committee (Miscellaneous) on 15 March 2011;

(h)

licensed premises received an addendum to their licenses stipulating new mandatory conditions such as a ban on irresponsible drinking and access to free tap water and requested that they be attached to the existing license;

(i)

the coalition government had published a consultation document entitled ‘rebalancing the Licensing Act’ that sets out proposals to amend the Licensing Act 2003; officers viewed the proposals favorably;

(j)

fewer reviews of licensed premises had taken place in 2010 compared to 2009; it was considered that this was due to issues being resolved through the mediation process as enforcement procedures had stayed the same;

(k)

officers from responsible authorities such as environmental health, the police and fire brigade had undertaken a joint visit to 42 licensed premises in December 2010 to inspect several licensing conditions;

(l)

throughout 2010 the Fire Authority has continued to carry out its inspection duties, under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order using two approaches; the first a Fire Safety Check and the second Fire Safety Audits;

(m)

Fire authority operational crews conducted 86 Fire Safety Checks within licensed premises to confirm that the general fire precautions were of a reasonable standard and that a fire risk assessment had been conducted; of the 86 checks, 21 resulted in audits from fire safety officers

(n)

the fire safety audit was based on the Chief Fire Officers Association nationally approved enforcement policy and can result in five levels of enforcement:

• Broadly complaint
• Non compliant with minor deficiencies
• Action plan
• Enforcement notice
• Prohibition notice - prosecution can be considered particularly where dangerous conditions are found; 

(o)

Fire Safety Officers carried out 40 audits within Licensed Premises, 21 of these resulted from Fire Safety Checks and 19 resulted from a pre-programmed inspection strategy and more importantly joint agency work such as a late night operation carried out with officers from Environmental Health, Licensing, the Police and Fire Service in early December 2010;

(p)

of the 40 audits, two resulted in a Prohibition (on inappropriate sleeping arrangements), four resulted in Enforcement Notices, five resulted in Action Plans, 14 resulted in Notification of Deficiencies and 15 were broadly compliant;

(q)

the total number of audits in Licensed Premises was double the number carried out in 2009 in similar premises;