Temporary Event Notices: What Are They & Do I Need One?

Public events can be one of the best ways to raise funding for your cause. They provide you with a great way of making some money, while also helping you to raise awareness about the charity for which you are collecting.

If you are considering running a public event of this kind, you will have to fulfil a number of legal requirements. Licensing obligations are paramount amongst these. If you are to stay within the law, and therefore ensure that you are permitted to run further events in the future, it is vital that you understand the licensing law. Temporary Event Notices (TENs) are an important element of this.

What are Temporary Event Notices?

If you wish to run an event for fewer than 500 people, at which a ‘licensable activity’ will take place, you must serve a Temporary Event Notice notifying the Council and police of your intentions. Licensable activities include the sale of alcohol, the supply of alcohol to a member of a club, the provision of ‘late night refreshment’, and the provision of regulated entertainment (for example live music or dancing).

Temporary Event Notices have replaced the ‘occasional licences’ that were previously required under the Licensing Act. Of course, you will only need such a licence if you wish to run an event on unlicensed premises, or if your event includes activities that are not already covered by a premises’ existing licence.

What are the restrictions?

There are strict restrictions in place for Temporary Event Notices. To begin with, if your event will last for more than 96 hours, or if you expect that more than 499 people will attend, you need to seek a premises licence instead. The procedure for getting a licence of this kind is significantly more arduous.

Unless you are already a personal licence holder, you can only serve five TENs in any calendar year. Similarly, no premises will be granted more than 12 in any calendar year, and no premises will be allowed to host temporary events on more than 15 days during the same period.

How do I serve a Temporary Event Notice?

If you intend to run an event of this type, you must serve a Temporary Event Notice at least 10 days before it begins. Once you have served the TEN, it will be considered by the police. If they have an objection, you will be notified of this within 48 hours and a hearing will occur within seven days. You must serve the TEN to your relevant local council; you will be able to find the application form on their website.

It is also important to note that a TEN does not exempt you from other laws, and the police may still intervene if they believe a public disturbance or nuisance is occurring or is about to occur.

Finally, you should remember that as an event organiser, you may be held liable for injury to people or damage to their property. As a result, you should seriously consider taking out public liability insurance before continuing.