Club premises certificate

If you run a member's club, you will need a club premises certificate if you want to: 

• sell or supply alcohol to members or guests 
• provide regulated entertainment, like musical performances or film screenings to members or guests 

You still need a certificate even if the event or activity is for charity. 

Please read the requirements set out on this page before you submit an application. We cannot proceed with your application unless you give us all the information we need.  

To qualify for a certificate, your club must make sure that: 

• it has premises that are occupied and used regularly for club purposes 
• alcohol and entertainment is only provided to members and their guests 
• only someone 18 or older who is nominated by the club can serve alcohol or buy it for the club 
• there is no arrangement for anyone to benefit financially from buying or selling alcohol 
• new members wait two days from their application before getting membership privileges 
• it is established and conducted in good faith 
• it has at least 25 members 

Prices and fees for club premises certificates are based on the rateable value of your premises, from Bands A to E. You can check your rateable value on the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) website. 

Fees for the licence and our pre-application service can be found in our fees and charges booklet. 

Your application must include the following details: 

• an operating schedule 
• a site plan of the premises 
• the address of the premises 
• a copy of the club rules 

You will receive confirmation from us that your application is valid. After this you must:

• display a notice outside the premises for 28 days (you must print this on pale blue paper - examples are available to download on this page)
• give public notice of your application in a local newspaper within 10 working days of the application

Consultation period

Once we receive your application, we will start a 28 day public consultation period.  

We will notify and consult with:  

• Planning  
• The Fire Authority  
• The Police  
• Trading Standards  
• Environmental Health 
• Director of Public Health  
• Home Office Immigration Enforcement  

All of the responsible authorities listed above or any other person can make a representation about an application within the 28 day consultation period.   

We must allow 28 days for objections to be made. If we receive any objections, the application will be referred to our Licensing Committee for determination.  

If we do not receive any relevant representations against your application, we will grant the certificate once the consultation period ends.  

How long the licence is valid for

We grant club premises certificates for the lifetime of your business, dependent on the annual fee being received, or unless we state otherwise. However, we can revoke or suspend your certificate if you breach the terms of your certificate.  

Changes in circumstances

The holder of a club premises certificate must comply with certain duties. You must let us know of any change in circumstances.  

This includes: 

• a change of name, club rules and/or registered address of the club (fee applies) 
• if you wish to surrender a certificate 
• if you require a duplicate copy of a certificate following loss or theft

The Chief of Police can give notice to us if they think a transfer of certificate could undermine crime prevention. The police must provide us with this notice within 14 days of receiving notification of the application.