Revised Change of DPS Form

You may be sure that not much is happening in the licensing world when the hot news of the week is that the Government has published a revised change of DPS form.  It is my fervent hope that the excitement (such as it is) generated by The Licensing Act 2003 (Premises licences and club premises certificates) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 has more to it than the need felt by competing websites to pump out three hundred words in order to maintain their Google ratings.

The seismic event that has caused a spate of “newsflashes” is no more than a minor amendment to the Guidance Notes accompanying the application form for a change of DPS. The notes have been amended so as to require the applicant to confirm that the outgoing DPS has been notified of the application.  There is no longer a requirement to send a copy of the application itself.

As the explanatory memorandum to the new regulations states: “These Regulations substitute the prescribed application form to vary a premises licence to specify an individual as designated premises supervisor under the Licensing Act 2003. The prescribed form includes amended notes which indicate that notice of the application to change the designated premises supervisor (“DPS”) must be given to the existing supervisor, but this does not mean that a copy of the prescribed form must be given to the existing supervisor. This protects the personal data of the proposed DPS.”

The problem with the old regime was that the personal details of the incoming DPS would be given to the outgoing DPS – who may not be the best of friends with the new.

The Guidance notes have also been amended to refer to Section 38 and the fact that a variation to the DPS can have immediate effect.

Link to The Licensing Act 2003 (Premises licences and club premises certificates) (Amendment) Regulations 2018

Gerald Gouriet QC

Francis Taylor Building

Inner Temple

See also: light touch bureaucracy