Lothbury Property Trust Company Limited has applied to Camden Council for a new premises licence for the ground floor and basement at 23 Rathbone Place, Fitzrovia.
Permission is sought for the sale of alcohol for consumption both on and off the premises from 10am to 11.30pm, Monday to Thursday; 10am to midnight on Friday and Saturday; and from 12noon until 10.30pm on Sunday.
The application also seeks permission for the sale of late night refreshment until the same terminal hours as the sale of alcohol from Monday to Saturday.
A number of conditions have been offered in support of the application.
The requested licence is in addition to the existing premises licence (PREM-LIC\105927), and is known as a “shadow licence”.
“A shadow licence is a term used to describe a second or subsequent licence for premises where a licence already exists,” says Camden Council’s statement of Licensing Policy.
“A ‘shadow licence’ may therefore replicate the authorised licensable activities, hours and conditions of an existing licence or it may differ in all respects.
“The effect of holding a ‘shadow licence’ could be that in the event of an existing licence being revoked, suspended, surrendered or lapsing, the holder of a ‘shadow licence’ can use that ‘shadow licence’ immediately to allow the holder to continue operating at the premises.”
However the applicant has not included conditions recommended by the licensing authority to safeguard against “confusion” or abuse of the shadow licence.
Camden expects applicants for shadow licences to include a condition to ensure that the licence holder does not trade from or operate the premises under the licence “for a period of three months after the revocation of [a] premises licence”.
The licensing authority also expects applicants to include principles that commit licensed premises to act in a responsible manner, taking women’s safety seriously and “set out the practical steps licensed premises can take to support this”.
The application does not include these principles in the conditions offered.
To view the details of the application and make a comment, search Camden’s public licensing register for the following reference:
APP\PREMISES-NEW\117884, 23 Rathbone Place, London W1T 1HZ.
A public consultation on the application is open until 5 December 2023.
Residents in Camden may also contact the Charlotte Street Association for help and advice in responding to planning and licensing applications.
Camden’s Statement of Licensing Policy can be found here.