Wake-up call: Do you have the right licence to throw your guests a party?
A function room can be a lucrative sideline and a great cross-sell, but first ensure you are covered when it comes to licensing, says Piers Warne
THE PROBLEM
The revenue stream from a function room is a welcome boost and a showcase for other facilities at a hotel or restaurant. Operators can cross-sell a function room service to guests, be it for a wedding party or corporate function. However, there are some rules that influence if, when and how you can use your function room.
THE LAW
A premises licence is required for a range of activities, and unless the Temporary Event Notices' (TENs) provisions under the Licensing Act provide for enough events in a year (see below), your licence will dictate what you can and cannot do. The first things to check are:
- Does the licence plan show your function room on it and is it included within any area marked for licensable activities?
- Does the licence permit the activities you require? Remember, sale and supply of alcohol, provision of regulated entertainment and late-night refreshment all require authorisation.
- Do the conditions restrict your activities at all, or are there specific conditions relating to the use of the function room?
EXPERT ADVICE
Any of the above can seriously curtail any aspirations of using a function room. The licence needs to reflect what it is you specifically want to use it for. Therefore, the first port of call needs to be a check on what you can and cannot do.
TENs allow licensable activities outside of the usual permissions on a licence, and they can be a useful tool in getting the most use out of a function room. The benefit of a TEN is that it suspends any licence conditions during the course of its application, unless it has been added back in because of a representation by either the police or the environmental health office.
The downsides are the limit on numbers (12 in a calendar year) and the application deadline, which prevents any last-minute bookings.
CHECKLIST
Either way, it is worth checking that bookings of the local country and western society dinner and dance are not going to annoy the neighbours when the band strikes up. Common sense is needed to ensure proper controls are put in place and checks should be undertaken to ensure there will be no noise pollution.
If in doubt, and if this is likely to be a regular thing, double glazing, secondary noise insulation panels and noise limiters are all worth considering before you allow that 21st birthday party booking that is bringing their own DJ.
BEWARE!
With instant reporting by customers through Twitter and the numerous travel review websites, making sure hotel guests have a sound night's sleep is priority. So think about noise pollution inside as well as out. Many a reputation has been lost by disgruntled guests complaining about the wedding reception singing 'Come on Eileen' at the top of their lungs at 1am.
A function room provides a flexible and adaptable revenue stream that is worth exploring. Just make sure equal consideration is given to the licence, the neighbours and, most importantly, the other overnight guests.
Done properly, it's another string to the bow. Done badly, it changes the whole nature of a business - and sometimes not for the better.
CONTACT
Piers Warne is a licensing solicitor at national law firm TLT
Piers.Warne@TLTsolicitors.com
