Agenda and minutes

NOTED       that no Member or Officer declared any interest pursuant to any statutory requirement in any matter discussed or voted upon at the meeting.

The Chairman advised that the proceedings were being recorded by the Council and that the meeting was being livestreamed and broadcast from the Civic Suite, Castle House.

AGREED      that the Minutes of the meeting held on 11 November 2021 were a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

This is a training session delivered by Nottinghamshire Women’s Aid and an organisation called Communities Inc.

The Committee received a brief training session entitled “Stand by Her” which was delivered by the following two organisations: Nottinghamshire Women’s Aid; and Communities Inc.

They outlined to Members that there were three main points to the training sessions which were noted as: See; Report; and Support and how these could be actioned in the event of someone witnessing an incident of hate in a public place.  The format for the training sessions was that they were delivered to women and men separately. 

The Business Manager – Public Protection advised that the training had been launched as part of the Community Safety Partnership to look at the safety of women which had then developed to their safety in the night time economy.  The programme had then been further developed for Council staff and was also to be rolled out to workers within the night time economy e.g. licensees and also to taxi drivers, with feedback so far from those who had received the training having been positive.

In considering the presentation a Member queried as to what the issues were of reporting misogyny within the night time economy.  In response, Members were advised that it was believed that misogyny was radically under-reported for a number of reasons e.g. fear of recrimination or response.  The training attempted to clarify what the term misogyny actually meant and what actions could be taken to help to prevent it.  It was noted that Nottinghamshire Police were the first Authority in the country to classify it as a hate crime.

In noting that the training sessions raised awareness of the issue, a Member queried how its success was measured.  In response, Members were advised that this measure by feedback from participants, e.g. from the women’s sessions they indicated they felt listened to; felt more confident; had been provided with practical tools to deal with incidents; and that these comments were then fed into the sessions held with men.  This provided a multi-layered approach. 

A Member queried whether the sessions could be held in schools and colleges, adding that it would be of benefit to both students and staff.  It was noted that sessions could be tailored for educational establishments.

Members were also informed that training sessions with aim of tackling disability hate crime on public transport had also been delivered in the past to other organisations.

In closing the presentation, the Chairman thanked the organisations for their attendance at Committee and for the work they were doing.

AGREED      that the Forward Plan be noted and that the following items be added:

                   Night-Time Economy Visits by the Licensing Committee

                   Promotion of Pub Watch

The Committee considered the report presented by the Business Manager – Public Protection which sought to provide Members with information as to future training opportunities. 

The report set out that there would again be training provided by the Nottinghamshire Authorities Licensing Group which was scheduled for Tuesday, 5 July 2022.  It was also reported that a refresher training session would be provided for all Members of the Committee and that this was scheduled for Tuesday, 31 May. 

In relation to the training scheduled for 5 July, the Business Manager advised that the Agenda for the day was being developed but it was anticipated that it would cover a broader range of topics than in previous years. 

AGREED      (unanimously) that the proposed training sessions be noted and supported.

The Committee considered the report presented by the Business Manager – Public Protection which sought to update Member on the progress towards the production of an Evening Economy Strategy.

The report set out that the development of such a strategy had been discussed prior to the 2020 pandemic and that it had been acknowledged that this should be done in conjunction with colleagues from Planning and Economic Growth.  In November 2020 the Economic Development Committee had approved the Economic Growth Strategy and Action Plan.  Within the Strategy it had been outlined that one of the actions was to develop an Evening Economy Strategy in 2022.  Specialist consultants had been commissioned to provide advice and guidance to develop an Evening and Night Time Economy Strategy for the district. 

AGREED      (unanimously) that the progress of the Night Time Economy Strategy be noted.

The Committee considered the Minutes of the Licensing Hearing in relation to the Brook House Brewery held on 23 November 2021.

AGREED      (unanimously) that the Minutes be noted.

The Committee considered the Minutes of the Licensing Hearing held in relation to The Renaissance, Kelham Hall Ltd. held on 6 December 2021.

In considering the Minutes, Members commented on the reference to the decibel level and that such levels needed to be clear in order to give confidence to all parties that it would assist in the reduction of any potential noise nuisance. 

AGREED      (unanimously) that the Minutes be noted.

The Committee considered the verbal report of the Business Manager – Public Protection which sought to inform the Members of two appeals which had been lodged with the Magistrate’s Court.  These were in relation to the Corn Exchange and The Renaissance, Kelham Hall Ltd.

AGREED      (unanimously) that the verbal update be noted.

The Committee considered the report presented by the Business Manager – Public Protection in relation to the activity and performance of the Licensing Team between 1 October and 31 December 2021.

AGREED      (unanimously) that the report be noted.

The Committee considered the report presented by the Business Manager – Public Protection in relation to the Temporary Event Notices received between 1 October and 31 December 2021.  The appendix to the report listed all the TENs received.

AGREED      (unanimously) that the report be noted.