Conditions consistent with the operating schedule
The premises will be a socially responsible part of Lancaster City Centre. It has a clear objective to be a staple of the high end, high quality food and drink scene. With this in mind the premises, its staff and management will actively ensure it prevents crime and disorder, keeps the public safe, is not a nuisance and protects children. These are vital to the success of the premises. All staff will be trained, monitored, and continually professionally developed to ensure very high standards are met.
The prevention of crime and disorder:
The premises is relatively small and the entirety (except toilets) of which is in plain sight of premises staff. There will be no areas within the premises where illegal drug use would not be in plain sight of all members of staff. Customers will be greeted on arrival and taken to their designated table (assigned at time of booking). Customers will be served at the table only. Unless visiting the toilet, the customers will be sat at their assigned table for the entirety of their visit. There is no location for people to loiter, such as a bar or waiting area. Therefore chance for criminal behaviour is vastly reduced and made unappealing.
Furthermore, a deposit on booking will be required, so those looking to use the property as a place for criminal activity will be deterred. The premises toilets will be a single person toilet, therefore the likelihood of the WC being used for criminal activity is minimal. The WC area is located at the rear of the unit, which access to is very clear to view for staff working behind the bar so disorderly behaviour does not have a place to hide. A single WC means that suspicious activities outlined below will be easy to spot, such as people following others in to the toilet and can therefore be easily stopped and prevented.
Staff will be trained to recognise signs of suspicious behaviour and to alert the necessary authorities immediately and will specifically look out for:-
- Torn up beer mats/cigarette packets/bits of cardboard left on tables
- Foam stuffing from seats/foam left lying around.
- "Roaches" (home made filter tips from cannabis cigarettes)
- Small packets made of folded paper, card or foil
- Empty sweet wrappings left in toilets
- Payment with tightly rolled bank notes or notes that have been tightly rolled.
- Traces of blood or powder on bank notes
- Traces of powder on toilet seats or other surfaces in toilets
- Very clean surfaces in toilets
- Spoons or burned tinfoil in toilets.
Staff will be vigilant and identify signs of suspicious activity such as:-
- A person who stays a while and has lots of friends that only stay for short periods (once people who are on the booking have arrived, no more people will be allowed to join their booking.)
- A person making frequent trips to the toilets, followed by different people at the same time (to avoid backup, only one person will be allowed to visit the toilet area at a time)
- A person appearing to hide in corners talking very quietly (there will be no areas to loiter in the restaurant. Customers will remain at their table for the entirety of their visit, aside from visiting the toilet)
- Lots of hand or body contact with members of the same sex
Prevent crime through high standards of service and cleanliness, alongside ensuring high profile staff. These will be used as a powerful deterrent to criminal activity. This will show we care about our venue and look after it and all that use it. Low standards and indifferent staff indicate the "dont care management style".
The staff will actively contribute to the local Pub Watch (and Retail Watch where appropriate) schemes to ensure the premises is pro-actively preventing crime and disorder. The unit will have a seating capacity of under 25. Therefore there will not be times when the unit is frequented by large groups. CCTV equipment shall be installed and be maintained in good working order in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
Training should be provided for staff members in the usage of the CCTV equipment. CCTV footage recorded must, as a minimum, cover each entry/exit point of the premises and be recording at all times when the premises is conducting licensable activities. The system will display on any recording the correct time and date of the recording. The images captured must be of a suitable standard required by Lancashire Constabulary. The images recorded by the CCTV system shall be retained in unedited form for a period of not less than 30 days.
A staff member who is conversant with the operation of the CCTV system will be on the premises at all times that the premises are open to the public. This staff member will be able to show police or any other authorised person recent data or footage with the absolute minimum of delay, when requested. The Licence Holder or Designated Premises Supervisor will notify the Police Licensing Unit on any occasion when the CCTV is to be inoperative for a period in excess of one working day and shall provide a certificate from a competent person stating the reason for the system being inoperative and the measures which have been taken to satisfy the licence conditions.
Appropriate signage informing customers that CCTV is recording will be displayed in conspicuous positions on the premises.
Weekly documented checks of the CCTV system, including the recording system, will be carried out by the Designated Premises Supervisor to ensure that the system is in good working order and fit for purpose. The Data Controller will make footage available within a reasonable time to a Police Constable or any other Authorised Officer, where such request is made in accordance with and which satisfies the Data Protection Act 1998.
A Drugs Policy must be in place at the premises and positive action taken when drugs are found. Appropriate signage must be on display and all incidents reported to Police.
Any pre-booked events such as Christenings or Parties etc shall be risk assessed as to the requirement for door security. A personal licence holder shall be on the premises at all times during which intoxicating liquor is being sold or supplied to customers, except in the case of an emergency. The person should be employed by the premises licence holder and must act in a responsible manner during this time
Public Safety
A safe and clean environment must be maintained for both customers and staff. Health and Safety guidelines will be met and exceeded. Food Hygiene training will be given to all staff to ensure safe food preparation for the public. Staff will actively contribute to local Pub Watch (and Retail Watch where appropriate) schemes to ensure safety for customers and possibly the general public present in other establishments which may be affected by anti-social behaviour.
Overcrowding will be prevented by only serving customers who can be seated with NO standing customers. Overcrowding will be prevented by operating a bookings-only venue.
Fire safety training will be given to all staff to ensure they know how to deal with an emergency situation and how to ensure all customers leave the premises safely. The main front door will always be left clear to facilitate fire exit use. Should behaviour of customers, or staff, that doesn’t meet high standards will be met with an invitation to vacate the premises to ensure safety of others.
Staff will be trained in conflict management to ensure that if and when conflicts do arise, they are dealt with in a calm and efficient manner.
Smaller measures of alcohol will be available (for example, if wine is sold by measures of 175ml, it will be made known that a smaller measure of 125ml is also available).
Alcohol free drinks must be made available and promoted equal to alcoholic drinks.
A zero-tolerance policy of serving alcohol to anyone who appears drunk must be adopted. There will be a zero-tolerance policy for drinking games and irresponsible alcohol consumption.
The premises will not employ marketing tactics such as "Happy Hour" in order to encourage binge drinking. The sale of alcohol at the premises will be designed to give customers the opportunity to sample high quality, less quantity drinks
The Prevention of Public Safety
The restaurant concept is designed to bring high-end top quality to Lancaster City Centre with all music kept at a low volume (in which voices will not be raised to maintain conversation) and the consumption of alcohol viewed as an opportunity to sample high quality, less quantity drinks. All windows and doors must be kept closed during regulated entertainment.
Ensure the premises meets the United Kingdom The Act (Environment Protection Act of 1997) and noise levels must not exceed 60db (A) between the hours of 07:00 and 22:00.
Following "last orders" there will be a half hour "drink up time" to discourage quick consumption of alcohol and to allow customers to drink alcohol at a relaxed responsible pace. At closing time, there must be a strong staff presence to ensure customers leave the premises in a quiet and orderly manner.
Staff must ensure that no customer will vacate the premises with alcohol in order to prevent drinking in public places. Similarly, no customers will be allowed to leave with glass bottles etc to prevent violent behaviour that may arise separately from the establishment. Staff must ensure that customers will be discouraged to leave with any waste (empty plastic bottles etc) to prevent rubbish being littered in the surrounding areas.
The Licence Holder will ensure that waste management is in keeping with the Local Authority waste disposal schemes. Waste will be put out to ensure minimal disturbance to the surrounding area. In order to ensure noise disturbance is kept at an absolute minimum, the Licence Holder must ensure that bottles, bins and other waste are not emptied between the hours of 23:00 and 07:00. There are no car parking facilities associated with the premises; however staff will ensure that driving customers will be offered alcohol-free drinks. On a similar note, staff will provide taxi information for those who require it, helping customers get home safely
The protection of children from harm
The premises will operate as an adults only restaurant. Under the Managers discretion, children may accompany adults for a meal, however parents or guardians of the children must be present at all times. A documented Challenge 25 scheme will be operated at the premises. The Challenge 25 scheme shall be actively promoted and advertised at the premises and will ensure that any person purchasing alcohol, who appears to be under 25 years of age, shall be asked to provide acceptable identification to prove that they are 18 years of age or over. Failure to supply such identification will result in no sale or supply of alcohol to that person. The Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) will be actively promoted at the premises by the display of Challenge 25 posters bearing the PASS logo. A PASS accredited holographic proof of age card will be the main identification document accepted at the premises as proof of age. A PASS card must be accepted as proof of age if a purchaser possesses one.
Where a purchaser does not possess a PASS accredited proof of age card, only the following alternative forms of alternative identification will be acceptable:-
- Photo driving licence
- Passport
- Her Majesty’s Forces Warrant Card All staff will be trained on how to thoroughly check the proof-of-age documents to ensure legitimacy, such as comparing the person to the image for specific facial structures and checking the ID for tampering.
To utilise and fully record any refused sales or challenges made to patrons and such records be kept in an appropriate form and be made available on inspection to the police or other authorised agency. All staff involved with the provision of alcohol will successfully complete training in age related products prior to operating a till.
Refresher training will also be successfully completed not more than every 6 months, this will be fully documented and be available for inspection to police officers or other authorised persons.
The business will endeavour to protect children from external harm that may be occuring outside the premises.
All staff will be trained and vigilant in identifying the following indications of Child Sexual Exploitation:-
- Children acting in an over sexual manner with adults.
- Children arriving and departing with different adults.
- Children showing fear around certain company.
- Children being in the company of anti-social groups who give them expensive gifts or other signs of grooming.
Should staff identify any of these indications they will notify Police and the Local Authority