Licensing rules 'may force village halls to break the law'
By Richard Savill
(Filed: 01/07/2006)
Saturday 01 July 2006 the Daily Telegraph

Hundreds of village halls are losing revenue and could be forced to operate illegally because the Government's new licensing laws have restricted the number of events that they can hold, according to a survey published yesterday.

The annual limit of 12 temporary events notices (Tens) has meant that bookings have had to be turned away so that halls can remain within the law. Fund-raising events generating thousands of pounds have had to be cancelled.

Action with Communities in Rural England (Acre), which conducted the survey in conjunction with Mori, said a fifth of halls appeared to be at risk of contravening the Licensing Act, or were restricting the number of events.

"There are thought to be 8,900 village halls in England, so this represents a significant number of communities," said Acre, which wants the limit increased to 36.
"A limit of 12 Tens is not enough to allow a village hall to provide a range of services and activities that are necessary to support a healthy sustainable community. Bookings are being turned away to remain within the limit of the law."

Fifty seven per cent of halls that responded to the survey felt that the limit on Tens was inadequate.

Deborah Clarke, Acre's village hall information officer, said: "Volunteers managing halls already struggle with the level of legislation and regulation. Having to cope with a new system designed primarily for pubs and clubs in urban areas has not only added to this burden but affected their income and future sustainability."

The Tens notice is needed for the sale of alcohol at events where a premises licence does not include it. The survey found that two thirds of halls had not applied for a premises licence that included the sale of alcohol mainly because of the difficulty in finding a volunteer willing to act as designated supervisor.

Twenty nine per cent of halls expect between nine and 15 events per year involving alcohol sales, and 23 per cent expect 16 or more. Amateur dramatic groups that would previously have operated under a theatre licence now need to use Tens for interval bars.

The Department of Culture, Media and Sport said it would consider the survey, but a spokesman added: "The cap on numbers [of Tens] ensures people are adequately protected from excessive noise, nuisance and disturbance."