Pavement licences guidance

Plymouth City Council supports the development of a cafe culture that can have various positive impacts on the community and local economy. Encouraging cafe culture can create vibrant public spaces, boost tourism, support local businesses, and enhance the overall quality of life for residents. It can also promote social interactions, community engagement and contribute to a greener city, enhancing the life and character of the City for residents and visitors.  We are keen to help businesses through this process whilst ensuring the City remains a safe and welcoming place to visit

What is a pavement licence?

A pavement licence is a licence granted by the local authority, or deemed to have been granted, which allows the licence-holder to place removable furniture over certain highways adjacent to the premises in relation to which the application was made, for certain purposes

What legislation are the licences issued under?

The Business and Planning Act 2020

What businesses are eligible?

A business which uses (or proposes to use) premises for the sale of food or drink for consumption (on or off the premises) can apply for a licence. Businesses that are eligible include: public houses, cafes, bars, restaurants, snack bars, coffee shops, and ice cream parlours including where such uses form an ancillary aspect of another use, for example supermarkets, or entertainment venues which sell food and drink.

A licence permits the business to use furniture placed on the highway to sell or serve food or drink and/or allow it to be used by people for consumption of food or drink supplied from, or in connection with the use of the premises.

Businesses that do not use their premises for the sale of food or drink, for example salons, are ineligible. Though they can apply for permission to place furniture on the pavement under the Highways Act 1980.

Furniture

The furniture which may be placed on the pavement include:

• counters or stalls for selling or serving food or drink;
• tables, counters or shelves on which food or drink can be placed;
• chairs, benches or other forms of seating; and
• umbrellas, barriers, planters, heaters and other articles used in connection with the outdoor consumption of food or drink.

This furniture is required to be removable and related to the serving, sale and consumption of food or drink. Furniture must not be a permanent fixed structure and must be moved easily and stored away at night, unless previously agreed by Plymouth City Council.

Furniture NOT permitted under this licence would include furniture that is not removable and used in connection with the outdoor selling or consumption of food or drink.  Advertising boards are not included in the definition of furniture within the pavement licensing regime.

No other items may be placed on the highway within the licenced area other than that approved in accordance with the application and the licence when granted. This consent also excludes “A board” unless specified on the licence.

Plymouth City Council would expect the type of furiture to be “in keeping” with the local area.

A standard citywide design will not be imposed however, Plymouth City Council will insist upon a quality product and expect the style to fit in with the local environment. For example, domestic plastic patio furniture will not be acceptable.  Furniture must be safe and intended for commercial use. It must be properly maintained, replaced as necessary and kept clean. Furniture should be uniform in appearance for the premises. Furniture must not damage the surface of the highway and should not generate unreasonable noise when being moved at night. Consequently consideration should be given to using furniture with rubber feet.

A boards will only be permitted with special permission by Plymouth City Council.  Please include any requests with your application.

Plymouth City Council have introduced a preferred colour pallet for furniture:

Monochrome palette

Tonal palette

Colourful palette

Waste and Litter

All tables must be cleared of all uneaten food, other waste items, used crockery and cutlery as soon as reasonably practicable after being vacated by customers. All waste and litter arising from customers must not be placed in public litter bins, rather, these items must be placed in the premise’s own waste receptacles and disposed of as Commercial Waste using a registered waste carrier.

Food debris must not be swept onto the highway and any windblown litter in the area must be placed in the premise’s own waste receptacles. Designated areas should be kept clean and tidy at all times, with a regular sweep and wash down as required.

A pest control plan must be submitted with all applications.

Environment / Nuisance

External public address systems and amplified music will not be allowed within the licenced table and chair area unless such activities are permitted under a Premises Licence application under the Licensing Act 2003. The permission holder must not cause annoyance to persons using the highway or part of the highway to which the application relates.

How does this interact with other regulatory process, such as alcohol licensing?

It is important to note the grant of a pavement licence only permits the placing of furniture on the highway. A pavement licence does not negate the need to obtain approvals under other regulatory frameworks, such as the need for a licence to sell alcohol, and the need to comply with registration requirements for food businesses. Any sales of alcohol within the licenced area must be authorised by a premises licence issued under the Licensing Act 2003.

How long are pavement licences valid for?

To help support local businesses and give them more certainty, Plymouth City Council will grant licences for a maximum of 2 years, unless there are good reasons for granting a licence for a shorter period such as plans for future changes in use of road space.

The Licence may be suspended where necessary to allow highway maintenance, events or any other necessary remedial work to be carried out at the location covered by the licence.  At least 10 working days notice will be given to the licensee where possible. Plymouth City Council will not be liable for any loss of earnings arising out of the suspension of a licence.

Licences can be revoked at any time on the grounds that conditions have been breached.

How to Apply

An application for a pavement licence (either grant or renewal) must be made electronically.

Completed application forms must be accompanied by the following:

• Copy of public liability insurance to a minimum of £5 million
• A site plan, clearly showing;
  • Property boundary and proposed furniture boundary, clearly marked by a red line
  • Furniture layout
  • Measurements of clear space, including walkways
  • Locations and types of barriers to sperate the licenced area and the rest of the highway
  • Positions of any lighting columns, bins, trees, signs or any other existing furniture
• A pest management plan
• A copy of an alcohol licence (if applicable)
• Photographs or brochures showing the proposed type of furniture
• (if renewal) reference of existing pavement licence

What happens once the information is submitted

Once all the information/completed application & supporting documents are submitted to Plymouth City Council, the authority has 28 days from the day after the application is made (excluding public holidays) to consult on and determine the application. This consists of 14 calendar days for public consultation, and then 14 calendar days to consider and determine the application after the consultation.

Please note the consultation period does not start until all of the supporting documents have been received

Renewals can take up to 10 working days to process.

An application is only considered as submitted once a completed application and all supporting documents have been received.

Plymouth City Council will aim to consult with the following:

• Planning
• Public Protection
• Devon & Cornwall Police
• Fire service
• Ward Councillors
• Events team
• Street services
• Licensing team
• Place making team
• The BID team

The council must take into account any representations received during the consultation period and consider these when determining the application.

Site Notice

The applicant must post a notice, which will be supplied by Plymouth Highways, on the premises to which it relates, on the same day the consultation period starts. The notice must be easily visible and legible to the public and the applicant must ensure the notice remains in place for the whole of the public consultation period as detailed above.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to talk to neighboring businesses and occupiers prior to applying to the local authority, and so take any issues around noise, and nuisance into consideration as part of the proposal.

Applicants should record and retain evidence that they have complied with all requirements, including posting the notice at their premises. It is recommended that you take a photo of the notice on a mobile phone each day during the consultation period so that you can prove the notice was there for the required period.

Fees

The maximum fee for applying for a licence is £500. This charge covers administration and compliance costs. This is not refundable in the event that an application is deemed invalid, rejected, or a licence subsequently surrendered, suspended or revoked.

The maximum fee for the renewal of a licence is £350. A renewal application is defined as one made before expiry of the previous licence by the same holder, for the same premises and in the same terms.

Fees will be determined by the amount of chairs:

• Up to 4 chairs - £300 new application or £200 for renewal
• 5 to 16 chairs - £400 new application or £300 for renewal
• Over 16 chairs - £500 new application or £350 for renewal

Licences are non-transferrable and can only be used by the named individual on the licence at the named premises.

Assessment

The local authority will need to consider a number of factors, when determining whether to approve the application.

• public health and safety including security – for example, any reasonable crowd management measures needed as a result of a licence being granted.
• public amenity – will the proposed use create nuisance to neighbouring occupiers by generating anti-social behaviour, and litter.
• accessibility – taking a proportionate approach to considering the nature of the site in relation to which the application for a licence is made, its surroundings, and its users, taking account of:
  • considerations under the no-obstruction condition including the cumulative impact of multiple pavement licences in close proximity, in particular considering the needs of disabled people.
  • any other temporary measures in place that may be relevant to the proposal, for example, the reallocation of road space. This could include pedestrianised streets and any subsequent reallocation of this space to vehicles.
  • whether there are other permanent street furniture or fixed structures in place on the footway that already reduce access; and other users of the space, for example if there are high levels of pedestrian or cycle movements.

Footways and footpaths should be as wide as practicable, but under normal circumstances a width of 2000mm of ‘clear space’ is the minimum that should be provided, as this allows enough space for two wheelchair users to pass, even if they are using larger electric mobility scooters. The council will take a proportionate approach if this is not feasible due to physical constraints but a minimum width of 1500mm is regarded as the minimum acceptable ‘clear space’ under most circumstances, as this should enable a wheelchair user and a walker to pass each other

In areas such as the pedestrianised streets in city centre Plymouth City Council have requested that the minimum clear space should be 3000mm - 4500mm to allow for the fact that there might be cyclists there and also to create a separation. 

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The positioning of furniture should not discourage pedestrians from using the footway or force pedestrians into the highway. The available route must be entirely clear for pedestrians to use and not be impeded.

In general, all parts of the highway may be used for pavement furniture, assuming all safety and non-obstruction requirements are met. The exceptions are:

• Any carriageway or 'shared use surface'
• Any highway verge
• Where the width of the pavement makes it impractical
• Where other authorised street furniture makes it impossible
• Where sight lines are compromised and may give rise to health and safety issues.

Emergency exit routes, including those of adjacent buildings, must not be obstructed by the furniture and emergency service vehicles must have access along all streets at all times, even in pedestrianised streets.

All licences will be issued with a condition requiring a licence holder to make reasonable provision for seating where smoking is not permitted. It is expected that this will be the majority of the area. This means that where businesses provide for smokers, customers will also have the option of sitting in a non-smoking area.

Outcomes of application

• grant the licence in respect of any or all of the purposes specified in the application,
• grant the licence for some or all of the part of the highway specified in the application, and impose conditions, or
• refuse the application.

Is there a route to appeal a decision?

There is no statutory appeal process for these decisions

Enforcement

The highway authority retains the power under s.149 of the Highways Act 1980 to remove items on the highway which are a nuisance – whether they are licensed or not. This power is exercisable immediately in cases where the furniture causes a danger.

Where a business sites furniture for use by customers to consume food or drink without a licence, a notice may be served under 7A of the Act requiring the business to remove the furniture before a specified date, and to refrain from putting furniture on the highway without a licence. If furniture continues to be sited without permission, the council can remove the furniture and store it. The business will be liable for any costs associated with removal and storage, and the furniture will not be removed until such costs are paid in full. After 3 months of serving of the notice, the furniture can be disposed of as the council sees fit, which may include sale of the furniture with the proceeds applied towards the costs of storage.

In some circumstances Plymouth City Council may enforce or revoke a licence.  If a condition imposed on a licence is breached Plymouth City Council will issue a notice requiring the breach to be remedied.  If the licence-holder fails to do so, Plymouth City Council may amend the licence, with the consent of the licence-holder, revoke the licence or itself take steps to remedy the breach and can take action to recover any costs of so doing. Local authorities are encouraged to regularly review licences and enforce any breaches.

Plymouth City Council may revoke a licence, or amend it with the consent of the licence holder, in the following circumstances:

• If it considers that the highway is no longer suitable for the use as granted by or deemed to be granted by the licence. For example, the licenced area (or road adjacent) is no longer to be pedestrianised.
• there are risks to public health or safety – for example where it comes to light that there are significant security risks which have not been sufficiently considered, or addressed in a proportionate fashion (this should be reassessed as necessary, particularly in the event of changes to the terrorism threat level);
• this use of the highway is causing an unacceptable obstruction, breaching the no-obstruction condition – for example, the arrangement of street furniture prevents disabled people, older people or wheelchair users to pass along the highway or have normal access to the premises alongside the highway; or
• the use is causing, or risks causing, anti-social behaviour or public nuisance – for example, the use is increasing the amount of noise generated late at night and litter is not being cleaned up.
• It comes to light that the applicant provided false or misleading statements in their application – for example they are operating a stall selling hot food and had applied for tables and chairs on which drinks could be consumed
• The applicant did not comply with the requirement to affix the notice to notify the public of the application or secure that the notice remains in place until the end of the public consultation period

Where a licence is revoked, full notice with reasons will be given

The usual procedure for a breach of conditions will be a warning to comply and that further contravention will result in revocation of the licence. The licensee will be allowed reasonable time to comply. If the contravention continues or is repeated within the licence period, the licence is likely to be revoked. If any breaches of conditions are serious enough in nature, the licence may be revoked without the warning letter stage.

Licences must be clearly displayed at all times.

Liability

Please be advised that Plymouth City Council shall not be held liable for any consequences or issues arising from the placement of furniture under permit by a business. It is the sole responsibility of the business to ensure compliance with all relevant regulations and guidelines regarding the placement of furniture.

Contact details

Email [email protected]

Plymouth Highways
The Greenhouse
The Ride
Plymouth
PL9 7JA

Pavement licences: guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)