To consider a new premises licence at The Playa, The Leas, Minster-on-sea, Sheerness, Kent, ME12 2NL.

The Licensing Officer introduced the report which asked Members to consider an application for the grant of a new premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003 at The Playa, The Leas, Minster-on sea, Sheerness, Kent, ME12 2NL.

She explained that the Premises was situated within the residential area and whilst there was an existing license in place with the previous tenant, an agreement to transfer was not met and therefore a new license had been applied for. The Licensing Officer referred to the existing license as set out at Appendix I of the report; the licensable activities being applied for were shown as paragraph 3.1 of the report; the full application as set out at Appendix II with the plan of the premises at Appendix III of the report.

The Licensing Officer advised that there was the statutory 28-day consultation period during which the responsible authorities, as well as interested parties, had the opportunity to comment on the application. For this application no representations were made by responsible authorities. However, a noise management plan was agreed with the Environmental Health, Swale Borough Council was set out at Appendix IV of the report; and agreed conditions were put in place by the Kent Police which were set out at Appendix V of the report.

The Licensing Officer said five representations had been received from the members of public, and were made on the basis of the licensing objective of prevention of public nuisance as shown at Appendix VI of the report. Of those who made objections, one attended the meeting to present their representation to Members.

The Chair asked the Applicant and their representative to present their case.

The Applicant’s comments are set out below:

·         The premises known as The Playa had been an established venue along The Leas prior to much of the surrounding residential development;

·         subsequent properties had been built in close proximity to the site which had a history of approved development, including previously granted permissions for a motel to the rear and a 120-seat extension to the side;

·         the site had long been considered suitable for substantial commercial leisure use. Historically, the premises operated with a marquee and associated music under the licence without significant or substantial issues being raised. There was a clear demand from patrons for the return of structured events and music, particularly during key seasonal periods;

·         the applicant recognised that the noise was the primary concern and they had put in  clear and enforceable controls; they had submitted a noise monitoring plan; agreed decibel limits, with no amplified music beyond set hours, with the speaker direction away from residential areas, and controlled shutdown procedures;

·         the premises would operate with appropriate safeguards, including CCTV, staff training, and instant recording procedures; door staff during events, a refusal log, and a challenge 25 Policy;

·         all events would be managed with appropriate capacity controls, trained staff, and risk assessments in place;

·         the applicant operated a strict age verification policy and ensured that family-friendly use remained appropriate during  ...  view the full minutes text for item 905

To review the premises licence for The Royal Hotel, 29 Broadway, Sheerness, ME12 1AB.

The Licensing Team Leader clarified that there were an error, in paragraph 3.2 on page 4 of the report, which stated that on the 6 May 2025 the Director of The Charles Royal Hotels Ltd, Mr Ramesh Rajathurai applied to vary the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) and appoint himself in that role. This date was incorrect and should read the 6 March 2025.

The Licensing Team Leader introduced the report which asked Members to consider a review of premises licence granted under the Licensing Act 2003 made by Chief Inspector Vanessa Foster on behalf of Kent Police in respect of The Royal Hotel, 29 Broadway, Sheerness, ME12 1AB. The Licensing Officer reminded Members that the review had been requested for failing to promote the following licensing objectives: the prevention of crime and disorder; the protection of public safety; and, the prevention of public nuisance.

The Licensing Team Leader referred to the review application as set out at Appendix II of the report. She explained that as part of the review, the Applicant requested that the Sub-Committee to consider revoking the premises license.

She reported that when the review application was received there was the statutory 28-day consultation period during which the responsible authorities, as well as interested parties, had the opportunity to comment on the application. In this case, the Kent Fire and Rescue Service representative had made comments on the grounds of failure to promote the public safety licensing objective, and this was set out at Appendix III of the report. Additional information provided by the Kent Fire and Rescue Service representative was set out at Appendix IV of the report.

The Licensing Team Leader said Kent Police Licensing provided supporting documents, CCTV and audio files which had been circulated to Members and the Premises License Holder. Some of this evidence related to incidents that were part of ongoing Police investigations. These documents were marked as confidential and were exempt from public disclosure by reason that they contained information under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, there was information relating to any action taken or to be taken in connection with the prevention, investigation or prosecution of crime.

The Chair asked the Kent Police Licensing Officer, PC 11250 Andre Smuts to present his statement.

The Kent Police Licensing Officer outlined their reasons for calling for the review he said Kent Police had lost faith that the new owners were capable of operating  the premises, due to instances of assault, drug use, and license breaches since taking on the hotel. He explained the six incidents that were set out in the report.

The Kent Police Licensing Officer reported that the Premises Licence Holder had not responded to contact made by the Police and the previous Premises Licence Holder concerning an incident in December 2024.  He outlined the six incidents from 14 December 2024 until 21 May 2025 that were set out in his supplementary pack.