Licensing update: Working well!

Three months in, licensees explain what the licensing regime changes have meant. Daniel Pearce reports.​

The doom-mongers have still not been put to the sword. As Martin Rawlings of the British Beer & Pub Association told delegates at last week's National Pubwatch Conference in Chester, first they predicted a wave of alcohol-fuelled violence would kick off last November 24. And nothing happened.

Then they said "Look out for New Year's Eve!" Still there was no widespread rise in disorder.

Now the critics are predicting the sky will fall in when pubs are allowed to open later around the World Cup, and the hot weather kicks in.

Not exactly the biggest fan of the Act himself, Mr Rawlings pleaded for some sense. "Let's be positive. The Act can work, and it will work if we all make it work," he said.

Last week pub companies told us how, by and large, the new laws are working. And this was the message coming back from a random selection of licensees The Publican spoke to this week.

And is there a better example than the Oak Inn in Central Coventry? While some pubs are opting not to trade to their later hours, the Oak Inn has had the opposite experience.

Already a late-night venue with 2am closing before November 24, The Union Pub Company tenancy won the right to trade until 3am seven days a week under the new laws.

The extra hour has proved so popular, as licensee John Bennett explains, that two months in he applied for - and won - a variation until 5am to cope with demand. "Now I undertake to trade until 3am seven nights a week, and I'll take a view at 2am as to whether it's worth trading later than that," he says.

"Sales are booming! It's slowed my overall take - people don't want to be in the same place all night, so my early evening trade has suffered. But overall trading is up between 10 and 15 per cent, and as an accountant I've made sure I'm not spending any more on my staff."

The pub has received six visits from the police and trading standards' test purchasing operations, as well as one drugs squad visit to test surfaces. But Mr Bennett describes himself as a "new model licensee", seeing the venue as working in partnership with the police and the local authority, and praising Coventry City Council for being "excellent in all respects" in its approach to the Act.

Most importantly, he believes the laws are having a major effect on disorder. "There was never going to be any doubt that staggering hours would reduce the potential for conflict. The only problem is that now I'm the latest opening premises in the city centre and people are trying to pile in here late at night. But I work hard with our doorstaff, and I don't remember the last time I had a problem in the pub."

John's experiences were echoed by Ron De Vere, who runs the Hare & Hounds, a quarter of a mile from the centre of Halesowen in the West Midlands. The pub has been granted 2am closing on Fridays and Saturdays, although Ron says barstaff generally stop serving at about 12.30am as demand tails off.

"From my point of view they couldn't have planned the new laws better. It's marvellous!" says Ron. "Instead of everyone leaving at 11.20pm and 100 people congregating outside they are all dissipating between 11.30pm and 1am."

Best of all, says Ron, it means that the neighbours who had been looking for reasons to complain after objecting to his plans for later opening, have found nothing to moan about. "Our neighbours were looking for reasons to complain, but they've not had any," he says. "Sales are up year-on-year, but that's a natural progression as we spent £250,000 on our refurbishment six months ago.

"I really believe the public are changing their drinking habits. They are coming out later and staying later."

Flexible approach

Just three months into the new regime this anecdotal evidence may not be the ultimate proof that the laws are working in cutting disorder. But the one certainty is that there is no proof that they aren't.

While not reporting such dramatic results, many other pubs are simply enjoying the flexibility that a later licence affords them.

The Lowes Arms, a pub restaurant in Denton, Manchester, can now close at midnight on Sunday to Thursday and 1.30am on Fridays and Saturdays - when licensee Peter Wood chooses.

"If we're busy we can stay open, if not we'll close earlier. Even at the weekend, if we've got the feeling that it's not very busy we'll ring the bell at midnight. I've only used 1.30am a couple of times," he says. "I think midnight to 12.30am is the latest that most people want to go out."

Most importantly, sales are up on last year, although it's too early to say whether the licensing changes have been responsible. "We've certainly got off to a good start," says Peter.

There are plenty of other pubs where the Licensing Act has made little difference, despite the grief they may have gone through in getting their licences in the first place.

"We got our last premises licence last week - only three months late!" says Nigel Williams, who runs three pubs in Sheffield - two in the suburbs and one in the city centre. For him the new licensing regime has meant "almost nothing".

"We just relax a bit on Fridays and Saturdays, so instead of calling time at 10 to 11 [10.50pm] it's more like 10 past. We can go through until 1am if we want to, but it was never our intention to do that. Most of our customers are happy for us to stick to the old hours.

"A few drift off to pubs opening later, but it's not worth opening too late. Most people's consumption has gone down by that stage, so if you get one drink out of them you're lucky!"

Nigel praises Sheffield Council and police for their approach to the business - but adds that he knows many licensees in neighbouring Barnsley, where pubs have been shut down for not having the personal licence-holder on site, who have not had such a positive experience.

In Central London Bill Sharp, licensee of the King's Arms in Borough - one pub which did not apply for extra hours under the new regime - also has little to report, now that concerns over the delivery of his premises licence have been abated. It too arrived three weeks ago.

"Because of the time of year I don't think the new laws have really clicked yet. Time will tell when it's sunny and people hit the pubs in the suburbs."

Time will tell indeed.

• Look out for The Publican's next Licensing update in May.