MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL

LICENSING COMMITTEE

3 JUNE 2010

REPORT OF THE DEMOCRATIC SERVICES MANAGER

Report prepared by Janet Barnes 

1.           ANNUAL LICENSING CONFERENCE 2010

1.1        Issue for Decision

1.1.1   To consider the attendance at the Annual Licensing Conference 2010.

1.2        Recommendation of the Democratic Services Manager

1.2.1   That the Committee appoint a Member of the Licensing Committee to attend the Annual Licensing Conference in November 2010 and for that Member to report back to the Licensing Committee meeting on 18 November 2010 or 6 January 2010.

1.3        Reasons for Recommendation

1.3.1   At the meeting of the General Purposes Group on 11 March 2010, the Members’ Development Budget was approved.

1.3.2   In order to achieve a budget cut of £5,000, General Purposes Group agreed a number of reductions, which included only 1 Member of Licensing and Standards attending their respective Annual Conferences and that the Member should disseminate all relevant information and learning points to Members and the relevant Committee.

1.3.3   The Committee is asked to agree which Member of the Licensing Committee should attend the Annual Licensing Conference which is being held in Manchester from 8-10 November 2010.  A copy of the Conference Agenda is attached at Appendix A.

1.3.4   As mentioned in 1.3.2 above, the attending Member is to report back to the Committee.  This can be by way of a report or presentation to the Committee and would be for the attending Member to decide.  The Member will also be required to complete a Conference/Seminar Information Sheet (copy attached at Appendix B) which will be used to disseminate the feedback to all Members and will be placed on the Members Lounge on the intranet.

1.4        Alternative Action and why not Recommended

1.4.1   The Committee could decide not to send a Member to the Annual Licensing Conference, but this is not recommended as important updates on new legislation and examples of best practice are given at the Conference.

1.4.2   The Committee could decide to send more than one Member to the Annual Conference, but this is not recommended as there is no money in the budget to pay for this and it would require a request to Cabinet for an increase in the budget which is unlikely to be forthcoming.

1.5        Impact on Corporate Objectives

1.5.1   There is no impact on corporate objectives

1.6        Risk Management

1.6.1   There are no risks associated with this report.

1.7        Other Implications

1.7.1    

1.7.2   The cost of one Member attending the Annual Licensing Conference is £699.00 including accommodation and food and is accounted for within the Members Development budget.

1.8        Relevant Documents

1.8.1   Appendices

Appendix A – Annual Licensing Conference Agenda

Appendix B – Conference/Seminar Information Sheet

1.8.2   Background Documents

None

IS THIS A KEY DECISION REPORT?   Yes                                               No     If yes, when did it first appear in the Forward Plan?   …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..     This is a Key Decision because: ………………………………………………………………………..   …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….       Wards/Parishes affected: …………………………………………………………………………………..   ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..