Worthing Borough Council

• Members Clubs & Children

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01903 221068

licensing.unit@adur-worthing.gov.uk

The Licensing Unit of the Worthing Borough Council's Environmental Services Section is responsible for the licensing of private members' clubs as part of its duties under the Licensing Act 2003. Under the act such clubs can operate under the authority of a club premises certificate.

Only qualifying clubs can operate under a 'certificate' but there are a number of advantages and privileges that are enjoyed by such clubs over those that require a premises licence to operate.  

Private members clubs are organisations where members have joined together for particular social, sporting or political purposes and then combined to buy alcohol in bulk as members of the organisation to supply in the club. They commonly include Labour, Conservative and Liberal Clubs, the Royal British Legion, other ex-services clubs, working men’s clubs, miners welfare institutions, social and sports clubs.

Technically the club only sells alcohol by retail at such premises to members' guests. Where members purchase alcohol, there is no sale (as technically the member owns part of the alcohol stock) and the money passing across the bar is merely a mechanism to preserve equity between members where one may consume more than another. This explains why the 2003 Act often refers to the supply of alcohol in the context of clubs and not just to the sale by retail.

Only ‘qualifying’ clubs may hold club premises certificates. In order to be a qualifying club, a club must have at least 25 members and meet a number of conditions. The grant of a club premises certificate means that a qualifying club is entitled to certain benefits. These include the authority to supply alcohol to members, and sell it to guests, on the premises to which the certificate relates without the need for any member or employee to hold a personal licence or for the club to specify a designated premises supervisor. This offers a significant economic saving to many small private members clubs. In addition there are other legal benefits regarding police and magistrates closure orders.

Qualifying clubs should not be confused with proprietary clubs, which are clubs run commercially by individuals, partnerships or businesses for profit. These require a premises licence and are not qualifying clubs. A qualifying club will be permitted under the terms of a club premises certificate to sell and supply alcohol to its members and their guests only. Instant membership is not permitted and members must wait at least two days between their application and their admission to the club.

If a club decides to put regular events on for the public or to offer its facilities for private parties for non-members and corporate events then it will have to obtain a premises licence. However, for occasional events an individual, on behalf of a club, may serve temporary event notices in respect of the premises to cover a period of up to 96 hours on up to 12 occasions each calendar year, so long as no more than 499 people attend the event and subject to an overall maximum duration in the year of 15 days. On such occasions the club may admit and sell alcohol to the public or hire out their premises for use by the public.

To supply alcohol to members and their guests and to provide regulated entertainment Private Members' Clubs need to have either a Club Premises Certificate or a Premises Licence. For further information and if you have queries regarding the Licensing Act 2003 or wish to make a licence or certificate application please contact the Licensing Unit.

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