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If you want to sell alcohol you will need a Personal Licence.
In order to obtain a Personal Licence you will firstly need to satisfy yourself that you do not hold one of the relevant offences specified in Schedule 4 of the Licensing Act 2003. It will be obvious to you if you are likely to have committed an offence which is going to preclude you from holding a Personal Licence, assault, burglary, drink driving are obvious examples.
Perhaps some less obvious examples such as offences under the Food Safety Act, Copyright Patents and Design Act could also preclude you from holding a Personal Licence. If you have committed one of these relevant offences then you will have to wait until the expiry of the rehabilitation period by which time the offence will have become spent. Typically the rehabilitation period is five years but some offences can never become spent. If you have an unspent conviction then the Licensing Authority will notify this fact to the Police at the time of your application to them for Personal Licence and the police will then have fourteen days to object to your application. If they do not object your application will be granted, if they do object the matter will be referred to a Licensing Panel who will have to consider whether or not your Personal Licence should be granted. In exceptional circumstances a Licensing Committee can be persuaded to grant a Personal Licence despite the existence of an unspent relevant conviction.
Having overcome the hurdle of whether or not you have a relevant offence it is also necessary for you to have undertaken some basic training in Licensing Law. This will take the form of a one day course leading to the award of the National Licensees Certificate for Personal Licence Holders. You will be required to produce the certificate with your application. Your application will also need to be accompanied by a Criminal Records Bureau check showing that you have none of the relevant offences referred to above and to accompany this there will also need to be a signed declaration made by you that you do not have any relevant offences whether they be committed in this country or abroad.
You should allow a total of one month to undertake the course, obtain your CRB check and make the application to the Council.
Finally, your application will need to be accompanied by two photographs of yourself, one (certified by a person of standing in the Community to show that it bears a true likeness to you) and a cheque for £37.00.
The Personal Licence once granted enables you to authorise the sale of alcohol and also to hold the office of Designated Premises Supervisor at any premises.
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