Brent Council announce a summer clampdown on noisy parties and unlicensed music events - but weekends only

 From Brent Council

Noisy residents are the target this summer in a clamp down on noise disturbances.

Party Patrol teams will inspect the borough and clamp down on excessively noisy parties and unlicensed music events - issuing warnings or even confiscating speakers and music equipment if a party is creating an unreasonable disturbance.

Warmer days and longer evenings usually prompt an increase in noise complaints. To nip the nuisance behaviour in the bud, Party Patrols will be in operation between 6pm and 2am on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

They will check events to see that noise is kept to a reasonable level, use noise monitoring equipment, and make sure that any businesses have the correct licence if they choose to host a party.

Where appropriate, officers will engage with private landlords and housing associations and, if necessary, demand tenancy management interventions.

Cllr Promise Knight, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Engagement, Brent Council said: 

Persistent and excessive noise can be a nightmare for many neighbours. We want to strike the right balance in allowing people to enjoy themselves and not letting that fun disturb other people. 

 That's why we are taking a hard line against those who lack consideration and cause misery for others.

Avoid a visit from the Party Patrol with these tips from our Noise Nuisance team:

·         Tell your neighbours in advance of your plans - or better still, invite them.

·         Keep noise to a reasonable level at all times. Many people wrongly believe you can play loud music before 11pm. The law actually requires neighbourly and considerate behaviour at all times. It is a good idea to turn music right down after 11pm and to close windows and doors.

·         It is difficult to control music noise when you are outside in the open, so avoid speakers in the garden.

·         Ask guests to leave quietly after the party - no shouting, revving of car engines, or sounding of car horns.

·         Businesses looking to host a party must seek permission from their local authority if they are not already licensed for activities like music and the consumption of alcohol. If you're unsure whether you need a licence, please contact the team at business.licence@brent.gov.uk

To report noise nuisance or an unlicensed music event, download the Noise App at www.thenoiseapp.com or go to our website.

Cheaper licences to be brought in for pavement tables and chairs outside premises in Brent

Brent Council is to introduce a £100 licence fee for businesses to place chairs and tables for customers outside their premises.  This is a cheaper option that the current £81 fee and  monthly payment of £91.

The change follows government legislation aimed at supporting the hospitality industry during the Covid crisis while they recover from lockdown and to enable them to trade safely while social distancing measures remain in place.

The licensing conditions will aim to keep free pavement acess for pedestrians and particularly for people with a disability.  There will be an application process and a consultation period of one week.

There are likely to be a considerable number of new applications and the council has set the fee at the highest possible under the new legislation:

There is a risk that if no fee or a lesser fee was charged, the council would receive a higher number of applications for pavement licences. Not only would this generate a significantly increased volume of work for the Licencing Team, it may also lead to an over population of businesses offering outside table and chairs having a detrimental effect on the character and space available on our high streets and a rise in anti-social behaviour or other complaints.

The licences will not apply beyond September 2021.

The scheme will impose costs on the council:

It is proposed that additional members of staff will be required to assist with the extra work generated from the processing of these applications and it is intended to appointment two posts which would cost in the region of £60k for a six month period to assist with administering the new duties arising from this Act.

Detailed Guidance on applications and consultation process can be found HERE

Brent Council: South Kiburn Trust did not apply for music licence in time for the Festival

Contrary to reports that Brent Council has revoked the live music licence for the South Kilburn Festival at 5pm on Friday, the day before the Festival, a Brent Council spokesperson said today that the  South Kilburn Trust had not applied for the licence in time for the festival.

The live music was transferred from the park to the OK Club on Saturday.

South Kilburn SKirmishes over Festival, Music and Developers

South Kilburn Festival this afternoon (Tweeted by @SKTrust)

Following rapidly on the news that Brent Council had withdrawn the music licence for the South Kilburn Festival  at 5pm on Friday - no explanation yet, came this message from the Canterbury Works campaign:

Dear friend,

We write to you today with some bad news.  We are aware that some of you already know, however for those that do not it is with great disappointment that we have to tell you that the scheduled campaign event on Saturday will not be going ahead.

We had planned to have a stall at the South Kilburn Trust Community Festival, however after discussions with South Kilburn Trust they have decided it is inappropriate for us to be in attendance for the two following reasons:

1.       The event is a family fun day and this is what their park licence request is for and, in their view, our stall does not sit within that remit

2.       The Trust wants to ensure that the residents are presented with the facts, and the pros and cons of the different options and do not feel it is appropriate for us to be there to say our side without, we would presume, Brent Council being there to say their side

Some of you have already been in touch to express your outrage and anger but we must respect the decision of South Kilburn Trust. We had already got the balloons and t-shirts ready for the stall and we will put them to good use!  Watch this space regarding our big community event in September.

Thank you,

Anna

Canterbury Works Campaign Team

One residents' leader commented: 'Titanic battle between property developers and SK Trust, with residents caught in the crossfire'

See HERE for background

Meanwhile the fall-out from the Council's decision to revoke the music licence rumbled on via Twitter during the day:

The live music had been moved to the OK Club and this plaintive plea was tweeted this afternoon:

Perhaps things will become clearer on Monday when the South Kilburn Trust and Brent Council explain what exactly was going on.

Was Brent Council's leafleting licensing a success?

Brent Council's revised regulations regarding the licensing of leaflet distribution designated areas  the borough caused considerable controversy last Spring. Initially said to be aimed at limiting litter during the Olympics it was later justified as merely tightening up existing regulations. LINK

There were concerns that voluntary organisations and campaigning groups may have had to request a licence months in  advance of any events and the impact this would make on free speech. The complex regulations seemed to be using a sledgehammer to break a nut and suspicions that it was a disguised money making venture that would impact on small business.

No one has come to me to say that 'political' leafleting has been affected but I made a Freedom of Information request top find out how much licensing had actually take place.

I got a very quick response (thanks, Yogini Patel ) and here are answers to my questions (Answer in bold):

1. How many licences were issued after the introduction of the new regulations up to December 31st 2012?  20
   

2. How many were refused? 4

3. List the number of licences issued for each designated area? Wembley 18, Neasden 2

4. List the number of licences issued during the period of the Olympic Games 2012 compared with the normal period. 9 during Olympics, 11 outside Olympics 


5. How many unlicensed distributors were given warnings by council officers? 28

6. How many leaflets were confiscated from unlicensed operators and on how many occasions was this? Leaflets were confiscated on 15 occasions ranging from 150-300 on each occasion

6. How much increase was there in the amount of littering in designated areas during the Olympic Games 2012 compared with normal times? This information is not gathered but observations suggest that during the Olympics streets appeared to have less litter.

Helga the revanchist ignores regime change

There are few checks and balances on the power of the Brent Council Executive and under Ann John's leadership they worked hard at down-grading even those that do exist.

One of the these is the Call In, Overview and Scrutiny Committee the role of which is described thus on the Council's website:

Scrutiny is the mechanism by which the Executive is held publicly to account.  Together, the scrutiny and overview functions have the capacity to give non- Executive Members a significant opportunity to influence the proposals of the Executive and to probe into the impact of policy decisions on the Borough.  The Call In Overview and Scrutiny Committee meets as and when required to consider any matter “called in”, in accordance with Standing Orders and to make recommendations thereon.

Out of the last 12 committee meetings timetabled only  three have actually been held  Yesterday the committee met to discuss the Call In of the Executive's proposals to license leafleting in the borough.

Cllr Helga Gladbaum on her way into the meeting nonchalantly told demonstrators outside the Town Hall that she was going to vote for the Executive proposal  before she had heard any of the representations. Throughout the meeting she heckled other speakers shaking her head, laughing and say 'nonsense' when Cllr Alison Hopkins was asking if a campaign against incinerators, which was non-political, would be exempted from the regulations.  Gladbaum dismissed the Call In as a Lib Dem attempt to embarrass the Executive - which is of course a heinous crime when directed at as  fine a body of intelligent, diligent and august  men and women as you could find anywhere on the planet. They are as  we should all know by now,  always right. Clearly Cllr Helga Gladbaum believes there is no need to scrutinise their decisions at all and Scrutiny is just a waste of her time

But wait - wasn't this the first meeting of the new regime under the new caring leadership of Muhammed Butt, 'Brent with a human face', a leader who according to Muhammed's BNCTV interview wishes to:

....engage with our councillors, especially between the front bench and the back benchers - get them involved in the decision making process so everyone has an input and also I want to have more engagement with out residents and the electorate, listen to them rather than just sort of blindly defending our decisions.

Helga as a member of the old guard clearly hasn't got the message. Shafique Choudhary the new Chief Whip was in the public seats: perhaps he should have a word.

Leaflet Licensing: regulation gone mad?

Would he fire Ann John?

Despite the Council's clarification of their understanding of 'political purposes' I am still very sceptical about their proposed leaflet licensing system and whether they will be able to enforce it.  For those of you who have not been able (or could not face) downloading the document I print below the proposed Licence Conditions for Distribution of Free Literature.  It made me feel sorry for the poor small businesses trying to make a crust faced with this tangle of regulation.

All licences will be subject to the following standard conditions. Licences may also be subject to specific conditions based upon the application details.

1. All staff engaged in the distribution of free literature shall wear an authorisation badge with photograph of the distributor issued by Brent Council bearing the licence number and showing the name, address and contact telephone number of the licence holder so that it is clearly visible.

2. The above authorisation shall be produced on demand to an authorised officer of the Council or other relevant agency, such as the police.

3. All staff engaged in the distribution of free literature shall wear a hi-visibility safety tabard provided by the licence holder and marked ‘Authorised Distributor’.

4. No free literature shall be left unattended by staff for the general public to take at their discretion.

5. All places in the vicinity of free literature distribution, must be kept free of discarded literature so that the area does not fall below grade B of the Government’s Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse at any time. If an authorised officer of the council judges that the standard has been breached as a consequence of the distribution of free materials, his judgement will be definitive at the time. Challenges to that assessment will only be accepted

through the formal appeal process.

6. The free literature must bear the name and address of the licence holder who is responsible for its distribution unless exemptions have been agreed by the Council.

7. Applications for consent must be made not less than 14 days before the required date for the distribution of free literature.

8. Licences will be subject to the payment of a fee to be paid at the time of the application.

9. No free literature shall be placed on, attached to, affixed to vehicles, buildings, street furniture, telephone boxes or structures.

10. No free literature which encourages irresponsible consumption of alcohol can be distributed. This includes examples of: offering free alcoholic drinks; drink vouches; discounted drink offers; all in bar offers; unduly cheap sales; happy hours and similar promotions. It is recommended that responsible promotions for alcohol carry the Drink Aware message.

11. If an authorised officer requests the consented staff to pick up discarded literature, the staff member shall do so immediately.

12. If litter is created which is in need of urgent clean up, the licence holder will be liable for the full cost of the necessary street cleaning operation.

Can you imagine the contestants on the Apprentice trying to tackle their assignments in Brent?

Seriously, have the Council the capacity and the police the time, to enforce this?

Now Brent Council says campaigns would be exempted from Leaflet Licence scheme

Following my urgent enquiry about the proposed controls on leafleting in designated areas of the borough I have received a clarification from Michael Read, Assistant Director Environment and Protection, for Brent Council. I had asked: Could you clarify that for 'political purposes' would cover groups giving out literature with 'political'  (but non-party political) content such as anti-cuts campaigns, library campaigns etc -  so they would be exempted.

He says:

I am sorry for the delay in replying.  The exemptions including that for political purposes are not at the Council’s discretion.  They are included in the primary legislation which says:

‘(4)Nothing in this paragraph applies to the distribution of printed matter—

(a)by or on behalf of a charity within the meaning of the Charities Act 1993, where the printed matter relates to or is intended for the benefit of the charity;

(b)where the distribution is for political purposes or for the purposes of a religion or belief.’

Whilst the interpretation of the wording would ultimately be a matter for the courts, the council’s view is that the kind of issues you mention would fall within the definition of “political purposes”, would benefit from the exemption and would not need a licence.

The Brent Council press office had told the Willesden and Brent Times that the exemption applied only to 'charities, religious organisations or political parties'  (my emphasis)

This still leaves the issue of small businesses wanting to leaflet a shopping street to drum up business, such as the Windows on Willesden shops that the Council have publicised. As a Green I want to support small local businesses and recognise that the costs of a licence could be prohibitive for such start-up businesses.

Yes, litter is a problem, but so is maintaining the vibrancy of our streets and our local culture. As it is still not clear how these proposals would be enforced and by whom, I would suggest that the whole thing should be dropped.

Brent to charge for licenced leaflet distribution in designated streets

Brent Council is seeking approval for new powers to restrict the distribution of leaflets, flyers, free newspapers and other materials on Brent's streets ahead of the Olympics.

They see this as reducing litter and nuisance and state that  it does not include materials promoting charities or for religious or political purposes.  I can see that there may be problems of definition here.

There are three parts to the plans:

1. Designating particular areas or streets where it will apply
2. A licensing process with a list of charges
3. An enforcement system.

1. The proposed designated areas are:

Kilburn/Cricklewood – Kilburn High Road, Shoot-Up Hill, Cricklewood Broadway, Willesden Lane

Willesden/Harlesden – High Road (Willesden), Walm Lane, Craven Park Road, High Street (Harlesden), Dudden Hill Lane, Station Road (Harlesden).

Wembley – Bridge Road, Wembley Hill Road, Wembley Park Drive, Park Lane, Empire Way, South Way, Rutherford Way, Engineers Way, Olympic Way, Fulton Road, Brook Avenue, Great Central Way, First

Way, Fourth Way, Fifth Way, High Road, Harrow Road, St John’s Road, Lancelot Road, Ealing Road, Ecclestone Place, London Road, Dagmar Avenue, Linden Avenue, Mostyn Avenue

Kingsbury/Kenton/Edgware – Kenton Road, Kingsbury Road, Edgware Road

2. The licences will be subject to:

 

1. An application fee of £175 to cover administrative and part enforcement cost;
2. A £75 re-submission fee will be applied to cover administrative cost.
3. A discount of £25 will be applied to applicants that apply and pay online.
4. The discount is applicable to both applications and resubmissions
5. A fee for each distributor employed for each day of £75 except where the distribution takes place after 1800 hours or before 0800 hours where the fee will be £100 per distributor per day, or for Sundays and bank holidays where the fee will be £165 per distributor per day. 

The licence may be limited by:

 

1. Reference to the material to be distributed;
2. Reference to a particular period, or particular times or dates;
3. .Reference to any part of the designated area/road; or particular distribution

3. Enforcement

It will be a criminal offence to distribute materials in designated areas without a licence and material can be seized. The definition of distribution includes on vehicles and in telephone boxes. Fines will not exceed £2,500.  However it is unclear how, and by whom, this new law would be enforced and the alcohol ban enforcement problem is not a good precedent. 

The proposal will be discussed at the Council Executive on Monday.