Premises licence, late night and 24-hour opening

New licence or longer hours

A new licence, or a full variation to extend hours, goes to the council's licensing team with an operating schedule (your hours and the steps you will take to prevent crime, keep the public safe, avoid nuisance and protect children), a plan of the premises and the DPS's consent. A pale blue notice must be shown in the window for 28 days and a notice placed in a local paper within 10 working days.

Anyone can comment during the 28-day consultation — the police, environmental health, trading standards or neighbours. If there are no relevant objections, the council must grant the licence. If there are, it goes to a hearing, normally within 20 working days.

Going late night or 24 hours

You cannot add alcohol hours, or alcohol between 11pm and 7am, through the cheaper minor variation. Extending to late night or 24 hours needs a full variation, with the same notices and consultation as a new licence.

Before applying, read the council's licensing policy and check whether the street is in a cumulative impact area or covered by an early morning restriction order, which can stop alcohol sales between midnight and 6am. Councils are used to seeing conditions such as CCTV kept for 31 days, Challenge 25, a refusals log, staff training records and serving through a night hatch late at night. Offering sensible conditions up front often avoids objections.

Taking over a shop

When you buy a shop, transfer the premises licence into your name and change the DPS if needed. Both can take effect immediately on application, each costs £23, and the police have 14 days to object. The current holder normally gives written consent.

If the old licence has lapsed — for example the holder became insolvent — an interim authority notice must be given within 28 days to keep it alive.

Fees

The fee depends on the shop's rateable value band: Band A (up to £4,300) £100 new and £70 a year; Band B (up to £33,000) £190 and £180; Band C (up to £87,000) £315 and £295; Band D (up to £125,000) £450 and £320; Band E (over £125,000) £635 and £350. The higher pub and bar multipliers do not apply to shops. The annual fee is due each year on the anniversary of the grant; if it is not paid, the licence is suspended.

A minor variation costs £89. The 2026 revaluation may have moved some shops into a different band, so check the rateable value first.

How we help

We check the council's policy for your street, prepare the forms, operating schedule and plan, arrange the notices and track every deadline. If an objection comes in, we help you answer it on the objection's own terms. Council fees are paid to the council, and the decision is always the council's.