The Licensing Act 2003

Maidstone Borough Council is responsible for issuing and enforcing personal and premises licences for licensable activities in the Maidstone Borough under the Licensing Act 2003.

What are licensable activities?

The following activities are licensable:

The retail sale of alcohol, including to club members/guests in a club premises;
The provision of regulated entertainment (see below);
The provision of late night refreshment, which is hot food or drink supplied between 11pm and 5am.

What is regulated entertainment?

Regulated entertainment is any event which takes place in front of an audience e.g:-

The performance of a play;
The exhibition of a film;
An indoor sporting event, including boxing/wrestling;
Performance of live music;
Playing of recorded music;
Performance of dance;
Providing facilities for making music, dancing and similar entertainment.

If your proposed business or temporary event involves any of these activities, you will need a licence from us.

Please contact the Licensing Team in the first instance on 01622 602000 if you need any clarification over whether you need a licence, or what kind of licence you require.

Which Licences fall under the Licensing Act 2003 and how do I apply?

The Licensing Act 2003 covers the following licences. Please choose the relevant area:

How much do licences cost?

The licence fee varies greatly depending on which licence or administrative procedure you are applying for, and also on the Rateable Business Value of your premises. The fees are set nationally by law.

Please read the Licensing Act 2003 Fee Levels for a comprehensive list of fees.

The Statement of Licensing Policy

The Statement of Licensing Policy was agreed by the Council in December 2010 and sets out the policies that the Council applies when granting licences. It was produced following extensive consultation with existing licence holders, businesses, residents, community groups and the emergency services. It is based on the following licensing objectives:

prevention of crime and disorder,
promoting public safety,
prevention of public nuisance,
Protection of children from harm.

Section 5 of the Licensing Act 2003 requires that each licensing authority must prepare and publish a statement of its licensing policy every three years. We have recently carried out a public consultation on the review and revision of the Licensing Policy and this came into effect on the 7th January 2011.

Alternatively, contact us using the details to the right of this page, and we will email you a copy.

How do I object if someone’s licence application may affect me or my area?

Maidstone Borough Council understands that many residents and businesses are affected by licensed premises in Maidstone. We are committed to meeting the four licensing objectives.

Once the Council receives a valid application for a new licence or a change of licence, you have 28 days in which to make an objection. All objections must be in writing and sent to the Senior Licensing Officer, Maidstone House, King Street, Maidstone, Kent, ME15 6JQ.

If any objection is received, a hearing is held so that any interested parties or relevant authorities have the chance to make their views heard. Any decisions made will take these views into account.

Once a licence has been granted, people who live or work in the vicinity of the licensed premises may ask for a review of the licence if they feel they are being adversely affected by the operation of the licence.

If you have a complaint relating to a licensed premises or suspect a premises is operating without the required licence, please contact the Licensing Team using the details to the right of this page.

Public register

We offer public access to details of licensing applications and those licences which have been issued. You can follow the progress of a licensing application, view application details (including plans and a redacted application forms) and view historic applications which are issued as licences.

Please note: the PublicAccess website is available between 7am and 11.30pm, seven days a week. Visit the PublicAccess for Licensing homepage.