Licensing

Glasgow City Council issues a wide range of licences, from street trading to marriage, and your Community Council has no statutory right to be consulted on any of them.

However we take a keen interest in the administration of the liquor licences required by the many bars, restaurants and off-licenses in our neighbourhood. In Glasgow this function is delegated to a Licensing Board who meet four times per year in the Banqueting Hall of the City Chambers in George Square.

The meetings are open to the public and can last for up to three days. They deal mainly with applications for new licences, renewal of existing licences and for extensions to the permitted hours of existing licences.

Licensing Board meetings, the lodging and advertising of applications, and the submission of written objections are governed by the following timetable for 2007 :

If a licensed premises is causing a problem and the manager or licensee concerned does not respond then Woodside residents can contact the licensing sergeant at Maryhill Police Station on 0141 532 3700 for advice or intervention. When noise is the issue then the City Council night noise team is available seven days a week from 5pm till 3am on 0141 287 6688  to measure and control antisocial noise.

As a last resort a formal complaint about a licensed premises or an objection to the grant or extension of a liquor license can be made in writing to the Licensing Section of the Chief Executive's Department at 235 George Street, Glasgow, G2 1DU.

A written complaint can be made at any time and will often be referred to the Police or to the Environement Protection department for a report. Thereafter the licensee and complainer may be invited to the next Board when the problem would be investigated. A licence can be suspended if a serious complaint is upheld.

A formal objection is different and must be made in accordance with the timetable shown above. A copy must be sent to the licensee's legal representative whose address will be given in the advertisement of the application. To be competent an objection should relate to the suitability of the premises, or to the capability of the manager or licensee, or to the repeated occurrence of a nuisance or disturbance.

An objector is normally invited to the Licensing Board and it is always better to attend or to send an authorised representative to speak in support of the objection. Your Community Council is interested in the good management of our local licensed premises, so if you have a problem in this respect please contact us.