Pavement licences

On 31 March 2024, the pavement licence provisions laid out in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 came into force. The provisions introduce a permanent pavement licensing regime in England to replace the temporary provisions in the Business and Planning Act 2020.

You can apply for a pavement licence to put removable furniture on part of a highway adjacent to your premises for either or both of the following:

use of the furniture by the licence-holder to sell or serve food or drink supplied from, or in connection with relevant use of the premises
use of the furniture by other people for the purpose of consuming food or drink supplied from, or in connection with relevant use of, the premises

Relevant use means use as a public house, wine bar or other drinking establishment or other use for the sale of food or drink for consumption on or off the premises.

Furniture which may be used is:

counters or stalls for selling or serving food or drink
tables, counters or shelves on which food or drink can be placed
chairs, benches or other forms of seating
umbrellas, barriers, heaters and other articles used in connection with the outdoor consumption of food or drink

Licences granted under this provision are exclusively for the use of furniture relating to the consumption of food and drinks. Other furniture, such as advertising boards, are not included. The furniture must be removeable.

For other objects that do not fall within the definitions above you must apply for consent under the Highways Act 1980. You can also read government guidance on pavement licences (outdoor seating proposal).

Existing consents

Existing pavement licences granted under the Business and Planning Act 2020, prior to the commencement date, will remain valid until the expiration date on the licence. Once this has expired, businesses will need to apply for a new licence.

This will be treated as a renewal application if it is:

made by the existing licence-holder
in respect of the same premises, and
on the same terms as the expired licence

Any permission that was granted by a council under the Highways Act 1980 before the commencement date will continue under that legislation.

New application: how to apply

To apply for a pavement licence, you must submit to us:

An application form
A scale plan indicating where the proposed object(s) will be placed. An example of a plan that may be accepted can be viewed here
Proof of public liability (minimum £5 million)
Image(s) of the proposed tables and chairs to be placed on the highway
New application fee of £500

Access: When considering an application, a primary consideration is the amount of footway that will remain clear, if your application is successful. We must ensure that members of the public who may be accompanied by a guide dog, or use a wheelchair, or carry babies/ infants in a pushchair can do so without obstruction. 

When considering acces, we expect the following:

There must be 1.5 metres clearance between the boundary of the area used for tables and chairs and the edge of the footway to allow proper access for wheelchairs, pushchairs, etc.

If you are not able to demonstrate that good access to the footway is available for all of the public in respect of your application, it is likely to be refused. It is in your interest to provide this information where you cannot provide 1.5m of clear footway - please complete and submit our mitigating circumstances form.

Pavement licences will be granted for a duration of 2 years.

Consultation

We will consult on the application for 14 days (beginning with the day after the application is made in full). You will be required to:

on the day the application is made, fix a notice of the application to the premises so that the notice is readily visible to, and can be read easily by, members of the public who are not on the premises
ensure that the notice remains in place until the end of the public consultation period

You must use the public notice prescribed by this authority – this notice must be agreed with the authority before being displayed.  If you fail to place the public notice on display for the required amount of time, your application will be invalid and the fee non-refundable.

Determination

If we receive objections, the application will be referred to the Council's Head of Public Protection who will, in consultation with the Vice-Chair of the Licensing Committee, determine the application.

A right of appeal against the refusal of a licence is to the Miscellaneous Licensing Sub-Committee.Please note the appeal process is not subject to the five working day requirement and will be heard in line with published dates and the next available committee.

We will not grant a pavement licence where issuing the licence will result in:

preventing people using the highway from:
- entering the relevant highway at a place where such traffic could otherwise enter it (ignoring any pedestrian planning order or traffic order made in relation to the highway)
- passing along the relevant highway
- having normal access to premises adjoining the relevant highway
preventing any use of vehicles which is permitted by a pedestrian planning order or which is not prohibited by a traffic order
preventing statutory undertakers (utilities companies) having access to any apparatus of theirs under, in, on or over the highway
preventing the operator of an electronic communications code network having access to any electronic communications apparatus kept installed for the purposes of that network under, in, on or over the highway

National guidance has been issued and we will take into account this guidance when determining applications.

Renewing a Pavement Licence

Existing pavement licences granted under the Business and Planning Act 2020 prior to the commencement date (31st March 2024) will remain valid until the expiration date of the licence. Once this has expired, businesses will need to apply for a ‘new’ licence, submitting all the required supporting documents. The Licensing Authority will treat this as a renewal application if it is made by the same licence-holder, it is in respect of the same premises and is on the same terms as the existing licence.

Pavement licences issued after the commencement date (31st March 2024) are issued for a duration of 2 years. The licence holder will receive a renewal reminder 2 months before the licence expiry date, allowing ample time for the renewal to be made.

In both circumstances, a renewal fee of £350 will be charged.

Tacit consent

Tacit consent applies to this application. This means that you can assume the authorisation has been granted (subject to standard conditions that might apply) if you have not received a decision notice from us within 15 working days. The timeframe above starts on receipt of this acknowledgement.

Conditions of permission to place tables and chairs on the highway

National conditions

1. No-obstruction condition. Nothing done by the licence holder pursuant to the licence, or any activity of other persons which is enabled by the licence, must not have the effect of;

a) preventing traffic, other than vehicular traffic, from— i. entering the relevant highway at a place where such traffic could otherwise enter it (ignoring any pedestrian planning order or traffic order made in relation to the highway), ii. passing along the relevant highway, or iii. having normal access to premises adjoining the relevant highway, b) preventing any use of vehicles which is permitted by a pedestrian planning order or which is not prohibited by a traffic order, c) preventing statutory undertakers having access to any apparatus of theirs under, in, on or over the highway, or d) preventing the operator of an electronic communications code network having access to any electronic communications apparatus kept installed for the purposes of that network under, in, on or over the highway.

2. Smoke-free seating condition

Where furniture to be put on the highway consists of seating for use by persons for the purpose of consuming food or drink, the licence-holder must make reasonable provision for seating where smoking is not permitted.

General matters

No tables and chairs sited on a footway are to be placed within 1.5m of the edge of an adjacent carriageway. A minimum clear footway width of 1.5m must be obtained at all times.
The fee for the granting of the permission will need to be paid in advance
The tables and chairs must at all times be well maintained and kept in a clean and tidy condition
The tables and chairs must not be placed in any other area than that stated in the permission. They should be placed in an area delineated by a suitable temporary barrier
Furniture and temporary barriers must be in line with the Pavement tables and chairs design guide
The person to whom the permission is granted must ensure that the tables and chairs so far as reasonably practicable, and the persons using the tables and chairs, do not at any time obstruct the passage of or cause danger to persons lawfully using the highway on which they are situated
The permission may be suspended by the council at any time in the event of work being carried out in, under or over the highway on which the tables and chairs are situated or any adjacent highway
The person to whom the permission is granted must indemnify the council against any costs, claims, actions or damages arising out of the placing of the tables and chairs on the highway
The person to whom the permission is granted must bear absolute responsibility for ensuring that adequate public liability and products liability insurance is held in respect of the permitted area and the cover obtained must be not less than £5,000,000, any one claim, in respect of public liability and not less than £5,000,000 in the aggregate during any one period of insurance in respect of products liability. Evidence of such public liability and products liability insurance must be provided to the satisfaction of the council before the permission can be exercised
The permission is not assignable
The council may at any time vary the permission or conditions of the permission
If the person to whom the permission is granted breaches any one or more of the conditions, the council may serve a ‘default’ notice requiring the breach of conditions to be remedied in a particular way within a stated time and should it be necessary in order to remedy the default, the council may require the tables and chairs, temporary barriers and other furniture to be removed from the highway either temporarily or permanently
The person to whom the permission is granted must ensure that the tables and chairs and use by members of the public are at all times supervised so as to avoid nuisance to:
- members of the public lawfully using the highway
- local residents
- other local businesses
The person to whom the permission is granted must ensure that glasses, crockery, napkins, cutlery and any other item placed upon the tables and chairs by the person to whom the permission is granted or by any other persons, when the tables and chairs are in use, are removed from the tables and chairs when they are not in use
The person to whom the permission is granted must not allow music to be broadcast on to the street
The person to whom the permission is granted must ensure that customers consuming food or drink outside the premises do not move beyond the demarcated area
It is the duty of the person to whom the permission is granted to clean the section of the highway in respect of which permission is granted

Design specification

Means of enclosure

When in use the pavement area will need to be enclosed, to demarcate the permitted area and contain the tables and chairs, making it distinguishable to other pavement users, and particularly to assist blind and visually impaired pedestrians
The layout of furniture and means of enclosure will only be approved if adequate provision has been made for customers with disabilities
The enclosure must be removed outside the hours of operation or when it is not intended to operate on the pavement within that period. The materials should therefore be lightweight in construction and portable but stable enough to prevent collapse if accidentally walked/stumbled into
The design of the barrier should complement the character of the surrounding area and in any event must have bars/elements at around 100mm and 1,000mm above ground level
Planters can be particularly attractive and can be used as part of the means of enclosure but must be removed from the highway outside of the hours of operation
The enclosure must comply, in all respects, with the council’s design guide

Furniture

The furniture should be of a high quality and uniform style within the permitted area. White plastic and or picnic tables will not normally be approved
Where umbrellas are used these must be fabric type (that is to say non reflective) and display only limited advertising or logos up to 150 x 450 mm in size. Umbrellas are to be positioned so as to avoid overhanging, outside the enclosure or impairing vehicle sight lines
Non furniture items, such as menu boards, signs and portable gas heaters also need to be approved as part of the enclosed area, and any unacceptable clutter or intrusion into sight lines will need to be removed if it is seen to be causing a problem
All items need to be portable enough to be brought in at the end of the permitted period of each working day or in the event of an emergency