New Licensing Law Update

In early March the application forms for the new 'Club Certificate' tumbled through the door, all twenty pages of it, plus all the explanatory paperwork!

My first thoughts were simply to ignore the whole sorry 'nanny state' release; but then I read an article in Club Mirror on the licensing act. The one thing that came out of that was "ignore this at your peril". So, Nigel's working on the plans of the club and I'm plowing through the paperwork and required revisions to the club rules & bye-laws. It all basically has to be in to Richmond Borough Council by 6 August or we cease to have a bar license.

Mike (I'd rather be sailing) Baker

STOP PRESS UPDATE: Club premises certificate

Monday 20 June was a bit of a red letter day. I finally posted off the application for the new Club Premises Certificate. It's only taken about three months to prepare. What a bureaucratic load of old cods! And that's putting it politely.

If we were a 5,000 capacity night club in the middle of Kingston, serving drinks till god knows what time in the morning, fighting a drugs problem and viewing anti social behaviour as a way of life I could understand all the palaver concerned with getting a new bar license; but for a small, non profit making, private members club it does seem a tad OTT.

Mind you, I've got my eye on some of our senior members, too much sugar in their tea and they go berserk. Square dancing, ballroom, lace making, surfing the internet, you name it, their into it. The management committee might even have to start issuing OAP ASBO's to curb their disturbing gardening and stamp collecting fetishes, or at the very least hire door bouncers to stop illegal use of Zimmer frames.

Mike (weight off the shoulders) Baker