Street wise
The Italians do it, the French do it, and now the British are doing it. Cafés and restaurants around the country have taken a tip from Continental Europe and are throwing open their doors and serving al fresco.
Pavement cafés are becoming popular as businesses realise that not only does al fresco eating increase opportunities for a higher turnover, but it creates a more attractive and welcoming setting.
Done well, with attractive exterior furniture, awnings and planting, pavement cafés can revive the look of any city centre. And by bringing customers out on to the street, city centres become safer places for all the family to visit, especially in the evening.
Consequently, local authorities up and down the country have had to review their policies on pavement cafés. Forward-thinking councils such as the city councils of Cardiff and Leeds, are now trying to encourage eating outside.
But the process of setting up al fresco eating is not always straightforward - the bureaucracy involved varies according to where in the country your business is based. While it is some councils' policy to issue licences before restaurants or cafés can serve customers on the street (as in Bournemouth and Brighton), others (such as York and Exeter) give the go-ahead without the need for such formalities.
Most restaurants are subject to site visits from council officials, however. Access, space for passing pedestrians, the disabled and pushchair users, and noise levels are all taken into consideration.
The cost of obtaining a pavement licence can also vary dramatically across the country. In Bradford, the city council pays grants of up to £500 to restaurateurs wanting to buy street furniture. But those in Torbay have to hand over an annual licence fee of £250 to operate on the street.
Yet most restaurateurs are not deterred by the bureaucracy or cost of setting up chairs and tables outside. Brighton Borough Council charges an initial fee to restaurants of £220, with an annually renewable licence fee of £83, but the town still boasts more than 70 pavement cafés.
Managing director of English's fish restaurant in Brighton, Simon Leigh-Jones, is not concerned about the licence fee. He says that he does not expect to be able to operate extra covers for nothing.
In the summer months, he can set up 50 seats outside his restaurant, in addition to the 100 inside. Because the outside seats are positioned in two separate areas, albeit adjacent to one another, Leigh-Jones has to apply for two licences.
"Business is definitely boosted during the good weather - probably about half of our customers will eat outside," he says. "Although fewer people will sit inside, the outside seats seem to create a higher turnover of customers."
The outside tables are laid with tablecloths and are fully serviced, and customers spend an average of £10 to £15 per head for a three-course meal.
One thing that all restaurateurs need, regardless of where they are based, is an extension to their restaurant licence enabling them to serve food and alcohol on the street.
The application for the Consent to Alteration (Section 20 Licensing Act 1964) has to be lodged with the Clerk to the Licensing Justices at the local magistrates court, for a fee of £10. In order to process a restaurateur's application, magistrates usually require some proof from the local authority that permission has been granted for a restaurant or café to set out chairs and tables on the pavement.
Graham Gover, of specialist licensing solicitor Penningtons of Bournemouth, says: "Even if an authority does not issue formal licences for pavement cafés, I would insist that the council produces something in writing that shows there is no objection to a restaurant operating on the street."
He adds: "The Highways Act 1980 Part V11 A, after all, enables councils to grant permission, either to themselves or to any catering establishment, to set up tables and chairs on a pavement."
Italian restaurant Pasta Romagna in Leeds has seen a marked change in its authority's attitude to pavement cafés since it was the first restaurant in the city to put chairs and tables outside three years ago.
Back then, owner Gilda Walker received objections from both the city council and police, but three years on the council is now one of the country's most enthusiastic supporters of pavement cafés.
Walker is delighted. "I am Italian and I want to operate as a Continental," she says. "We have seats outside all year round and they are always the most popular." Pasta Romagna has 22 seats inside and 25 outside, with no canopy.
Independent restaurateurs are not the only businesses to benefit from serving outside, groups such as Café Rouge are also keen. About three-quarters of the 39 Café Rouge sites operate outside seating, with the largest having as many as 100 covers on the street.
"Many of our cafés are in London where available pavement space is often not wide enough," says managing director of Café Rouge, Jo Cumming.
"But we will always apply for a licence wherever we can as we know it is good for business. Pavement cafés have been popular in Paris for the past 100 years, it has just taken us a little longer to catch on here."
A round-up of the UK's pavement cafe hot spots
Bournemouth
There are about 10 restaurants and cafés that pay an annual fee of £140 to Bournemouth Borough Council to operate al fresco dining. The licences stipulate exactly how much of the pavement a restaurant can take up.
Bradford
By offering restaurants grants of up to £500 for street furniture, Bradford must be one of the most generous city council's in the country with respect to pavement cafés. The money is being offered to cover up to 50% of the cost of the furniture, which, the council stipulates, must be of good quality and not cheap plastic. Grants have already been approved for two establishments, and another four are under consideration.
A spokesman for the city centre management team says the grants are being offered to improve the environment of the city centre and create a more Continental atmosphere.
Brighton
Brighton may well be Britain's pavement café capital as more than 70 licences have been issued by the local borough council allowing restaurants to serve the public on pavements. "Pavement cafés and restaurants help the town look and feel more interesting for both residents and tourists," says a council spokesman. "We always consult with the police and disabled groups before issuing a licence.
If there are more than three objections, the matter will be decided by the council's licensing committee."
An initial licence application in Brighton will cost a restaurateur £220, thereafter an annual fee of £83 is payable.
London borough of Camden
Restaurants and cafés have to make an annual application under the Highways Act 1980 for permission to put tables and chairs on to the pavement between April and October. A non-refundable fee of £62.50 per table is payable at the time of the application.
No applications have been granted yet this year, but four restaurants are waiting a decision from the council.
Cardiff
Cardiff City Council encourages al fresco eating, believing it enhances street life in the evenings, making the city a more attractive and safer place for people, especially families, to visit.
It is currently combining forces with the Welsh Development Agency to spend £600,000 on developing Mill Lane as an open-eating area.
The money will provide street furniture, suitable paving and the narrowing of the road to vehicles. Restaurants can set up tables and chairs on the pavement without a licence.
Exeter
Exeter City Council has a very relaxed policy towards al fresco eating, supporting it and providing advice if necessary. Two restaurants serve food outside their premises at the moment. They don't require a licence.
Glasgow
Glasgow City Council requires restaurants to apply for planning permission to set up tables and chairs outside their establishments, but a council spokesman says the council has not received many applications because the climate is not conducive to eating outside on the pavement.
However, Strathclyde Regional Council's £25m Millenium plan will extend pedestrian areas and reduce traffic in the heart of the city, creating more opportunities for pavement cafés, if required.
Hull
Pavement cafés are allowed in the consent area - a pedestrianised area in the centre of the city. Two licences have been issued so far - one to a restaurant which pays a £10 daily fee, and the other to an operator who works from a trailer and pays a £90 annual licence.
Leeds
Leeds City Council's 24-hour initiative to create a more cosmopolitan city directly encourages the setting up of pavement cafés. They have written to all restaurants and cafés in the city, where such developments are appropriate and there would be no obstruction, encouraging them to serve customers outside.
A street trading licence is issued following approval from the council, but there is no fee. Awnings are encouraged to protect customers from the fickle weather, which may require planning permission if the building concerned is listed.
Leicester
Leicester City Council wishes to promote street cafés - but at a cost to restaurateurs of £160 for a three-year Highways Amenities Licence. Interest has already been shown from 12 restaurants, which are being asked to submit their plans to the city centre manager.
It will be down to him to decide whether or not to grant a licence, after considering submissions from adjacent properties and making a site visit.
Newcastle
Newcastle City Council says it is open to requests for licences from restaurants which want to put out tables and chairs, but has yet to receive any. A fee may be issued, depending on the administration that would be involved. "The city centre is only one mile square and there is not much room to put tables and chairs on the pavements," says a council spokesman.
Norwich
Restaurants and cafés in Norwich are required to apply for planning permission to set up tables and chairs outside their establishment. There is no fee payable.
Three or four establishments have already been granted planning permission, and four more restaurants are expected to apply if the City Council's plans to allow open air eating in the historic Timberhill area of the city are approved at a forthcoming planning meeting.
Torbay
Torbay Borough Council operates the most expensive licensing scheme for outdoor eating of all the councils surveyed by Caterer. The annual licences, costing £250, have to be renewed annually by the borough council, in conjunction with the highways authority - Devon County Council.
They will be issued only if the chairs and tables on the pavement leave a clear footway of at least two metres.
Twenty-one licences have so far been issued this year. Restaurants adjacent to the harbour area do not require the approval of the county council and therefore have their licence fee adjusted accordingly.
York
York City Council is keen to encourage pavement cafés, so long as there is no obstruction to the public highways. It has identified St Sampson Square as a potential site, but has not yet received any applications from restaurants. Licences are not required.
