Licensing Guidance
Sheffield City Council is making it easier for restaurateurs, cafes and bar owners to get ahead in the city.
A new Food & Drink Guidance Note has been welcomed by some of the city’s finest including the Milestone, Platillos, Moo La La and Street Chef.
The Guidance Note has been prepared to give help to anyone thinking of opening a café, restaurant, bar or hot food takeaway, or wanting to provide outside seating areas on the highway. It explains the Council's approach for such businesses and how to give a scheme the best chance of success.
Simon Ogden, Head of City Development at Sheffield City Council said: “We know that people have been crying out for a simple route through the whole Food & Drink licensing process which can be quite complex and confusing especially where building alterations or outside seating are proposed. The Council also has to take account of the views of neighbours. .The Food & Drink Guidance is there to specifically help those in the industry through the process and will also be used by the Council’s First Point for Business service which offers support to new and existing businesses.”
The Council has been working hard to deliver the guidance in an ever changing regulatory environment. The guidance can be updated online and will be used by new and existing restaurateurs to help them get permissions needed to develop their businesses. It should also help attract additional business to the city by making it easier to do business here in Sheffield.
Matt Bigland from the Milestone and Milestone at the Wig and Pen said: “In the past we’ve had to use our architects to help us navigate the licensing system which has ended up costing us a fortune. Having everything together can save us time and money. This is a much more improved way of working, we’ve already used the online portal to help with a recent children’s licence.”
The guidance has been developed with help and feedback from the Sheffield Restaurant Forum (Eat Sheffield). It is based on policy backgrounds and procedures and is aimed at providing a ‘one-stop’ assistance for businesses and the public. It is not intended to be used for making Planning or Licensing decisions.
Abi Golland who has recently opened the Street Food Chef on Pinstone Street said: “We’ve just gone through this whole process and everyone at the council was great but I must admit, pulling this information together and having it all in once place will make a real difference. As someone quite new to the industry it can be really confusing. Having a ‘one stop’ guide saves time and money.”
The Guidance contains information on when a planning application, or licence from either the Licensing or Highway Authority is needed and the process to go through. It explains the policy background that will be taken into account when a decision is made. It also spells out the factors that will be considered when making that decision, such as, noise and disturbance, traffic issues, cooking smells, dealing with refuse storage and access to the property. It also provides a checklist for the applicant, on all the information that will be needed when making a planning application.
Lisa Levick from Moo L La added: “We’ve just gone through the licensing process. It’s difficult to make sure that you have covered everything so the checklist is great. Everyone at the Council was really helpful but we had to have a lot of conversations with different people, having everything in one place will save time and money.”
In the interests of giving businesses a single guidance document, it also provides advice on other permissions that may be needed, such as Building Regulations and Environmental Health, as well as contact details for waste disposal.
Malcolm Schooling from Platillos said: “We’re quite old hands at this so the guidance won’t make a massive difference for us. What is great though is that the Council has acknowledged what a complex process it can be. By providing all of the information and guidance in one place it will really help people get started. Anything that makes people’s life that little bit easier is a good thing. We always welcome competition and this can only make setting up in Sheffield more appealing.”
