Agenda and minutes

Resolved: That Councillor Rose be elected to act as Chair of the hearing

The Chair invited those present to introduce themselves; the Sub-Committee Members, the Legal Adviser, the Licensing Manager, the Democratic Services Officers, the applicant: Helen Heraty, her solicitor, Jonathan Smith, his witness, Sarah Czarnecki and the representors: Andy Oates, Kevin Mohan and his solicitor, Christopher Grunert.

At this point in the meeting, Members and co-opted members are asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary interest, or other registerable interest, they might have in respect of business on this agenda, if they have not already done so in advance on the Register of Interests. The disclosure must include the nature of the interest.

An interest must also be disclosed in the meeting when it becomes apparent to the member during the meeting.

[Please see attached sheet for further guidance for Members].

Members were invited to declare at this point in the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest or other registerable interest they might have in respect of business on the agenda if they had not already done so in advance on the Register of Interests. No interests were declared.

To consider excluding the Press and Public during the sub-committee’s deliberations and decision-making at the end of the hearing, on the grounds that the public interest in excluding the public outweighs the public interest in that part of the meeting taking place in public, under Regulation 14 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005.

Resolved: That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during the sub-committee’s deliberations and decision making at the end of the hearing, on the grounds that the public interest in excluding the public outweighs the public interest in that part of the meeting taking place in public, under Regulation 14 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005.

To approve and sign the minutes of the Licensing Hearingheld on 2 November 2023.

Resolved: That the minutes from the Licensing Hearing held on 02 November 2023 be signed and approved as an accurate record.

Members considered an application by Helen Heraty for a premises licence in respect of Grays Court Hotel, York.

In considering the application and the representations made, the Sub-Committee concluded that the following licensing objectives were relevant to this Hearing:

1.       The prevention of crime and disorder.

2.       The prevention of public nuisance.

In coming to their decision, the Sub-Committee took into consideration all the evidence and submissions that were presented, and determined their relevance to the issues raised and the above licensing objectives, including:

1.       The application form.

2.       The papers before it, including the written representations received from local residents.

3.       The Licensing Manager’s report and her comments made at the Hearing.

The Licensing Manager outlined the report and annexes, and it was noted that that the premises were not situated inside the Cumulative Impact Area (CIA). It was highlighted that the application was to extend the sale of alcohol to non-residents by one hour and to include late night refreshment. It was also noted that there were no representations from Responsible Authorities and that additional conditions had been agreed with North Yorkshire Police, as set out in Annex 3. She also drew attention to the five representations made by other parties at Annex 6. Finally, she advised the Sub-Committee of the options open to them in determining the application.

1.              The Applicant’s representations at the Hearing.

The panel had accepted a request from the Applicant for extra allocated time to present their case, the Applicant was given a total time of 17 minutes 15 seconds.

The solicitor for the Applicant, Jonathan Smith, outlined that the Applicant had never had a licence application appealed, although an application in 2011 was originally appealed to the Magistrates Court until this was subsequently withdrawn.

Mr Smith stated that on 12 August 2023 they had consulted with North Yorkshire Police, Public Health, and local residents regarding their application.

Mr Smith mentioned that the ‘L shaped drive’ included in previous applications was not included in this one, and that the application was only in relation to a change in hours.

Sarah Czarnecki (Director, Grays Court Hotel) stated that the hotel had changed since their last application in 2018. They had worked to change the perception and profile of the hotel – they used to host more weddings and big groups but more recently hosted fewer guests and smaller groups. Ms Czarnecki then stated that they had won awards since this change, including: Visit York Best Hotel; Best small hotel in York; best restaurant in York; best hotel in Yorkshire; best hotel in England. Mr Smith added that in 2019 (pre-COVID-19) there were 43 functions held, in 2022 there were 15, in 2023 there were 14, and only 6 were booked in as of the time of the hearing for 2024. Mr Smith indicated that if people wanted to book a wedding at Grays Court Hotel now, they needed to exclusively book the whole hotel, which deterred some from booking their wedding there.

Mr Smith  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.