Agenda item

To consider the attached report for a Street Trading Consent for Fruits of the Forest under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982: Part III.

The three Councillors that presided over this item were Councillors, R Morgan, S Heather and L Mead. The Chairman introduced the Members and Officers present. The Chairman welcomed the public participants to the Sub-Committee. In attendance was the applicant, Mr K Summerson. Also, in support of the application were District Councillors, L Burrows, C Whitbread and H Whitbread. Objecting to the application from Epping Town Council were Town Councillor M Wright and Town Clerk, B Rumsey.

 

(a)       Application before the Committee

 

P Jones, Licensing Compliance Officer, informed the Sub-Committee that an application for a Street Trading Consent had been made by Mr K Summerson of Fruits of the Forest, to trade at the Duke of Wellington Public House Car Park, 36 High Street, Epping, Essex CM16 4AE. A copy of the application was attached to the agenda report. The application was for the relevant licensing activities applied for and times requested, as below

 

The sale of fruit, vegetables, flowers, (honey, eggs, local organic farm produce)

            Tuesday to Friday    08:00 – 17:00;

            Saturday                   08:00 – 16:00; and

            Sunday                     08:00 – 14:00.

 

The application was received by the Licensing Authority on 17 February 2021. There was no requirement in the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1982 to carry out any consultation, but the Licensing Officer had notified Essex Police, Essex Fire and Rescue Service, Environmental Health, Community Resilience, Essex County Council Highways, Epping Town Council and the ward councillors. A public notice was also placed at the site.

 

The Council had received one representation objecting to this application from Epping Town Council. Representations in support of this application had been received from Epping Town Councillor M Whitbread, District Councillors C Whitbread and H Whitbread and a local resident. The applicant had agreed to additional conditions being attached to the consent if granted, as detailed on pages 74 and 75 of the agenda, which was in response to a representation from the Council’s Community Resilience Team, M Richardson, Senior Enforcement Officer. Environmental Health, Essex Highways, Essex Police and Essex County Fire and Rescue Service had no comments or objections to make on this application.

 

(b)       Presentation of the Applicant’s Case

 

The applicant, Mr K Summerson, had been a greengrocer for most of his life and had worked at numerous markets selling high class fruit and vegetables. He had been out of work but saw an opportunity to start a stall in Epping and had set up a good rapport with his client base. He wanted to stay at the Duke of Wellington Public House as this provided a job for him. He stated that he had also paid the required licence fee.

 

Councillor H Whitbread supported the application and shopped there like many other residents. She had started a petition to support the stall which 1,200 people had signed. The Councillor had asked Epping Town Council to withdraw its objection because Fruits of the Forest would not be open on Mondays when Epping Market was trading. This was therefore healthy competition and small businesses should be supported. Mr Summerson was working, enterprising and providing a good service to people.

 

Councillor C Whitbread remarked that he supported and, like everyone, respected Epping Market, but this was a single stall holder and Fruits of the Forest brought interest to Epping High Street. People had made lots of positive comments, but he had received no objections from residents and the stall deserved their support. Also, during this time when everyone was recovering from the Covid pandemic, there were lots of small businesses that needed some help and opportunity. There had been a great level of support for this stall, so there was no reason to object to this application.

 

(c)       Questions for the Applicant / Supporters from the Sub-Committee

 

There were no questions raised by members of the Licensing Sub-Committee.

 

(d)       Questions for the Applicant / Supporters from the Objectors

 

Epping Town Councillor M Wright asked when the stall holder had started to trade? Mr Summerson replied that he had started to trade about a week before he submitted his application to the Licensing Authority, which was when the Council had advised him that a Street Trading Consent application was required, but he had been unaware of this.

 

Epping Town Councillor M Wright asked Cllr H Whitbread for more information about the petition on social media that she had set-up. Councillor H Whitbread replied that petitions were part of a healthy democracy and a good proportion of the supporters were probably from Epping and the surrounding areas. The petition summarised the reason to support Mr Summerson’s Fruits of the Forest stall, as Epping Town Council had objected to his application, and people were asked to show their support for the stall, to try and get the Town Council to withdraw its objection.

 

Epping Town Council Clerk, B Rumsey, asked why the application fee and been paid and accepted before the application had been determined. P Jones, Licensing Compliance Officer, replied that this was a licensing fee, but should the application be refused the Council would be making a partial refund.

 

(e)       Presentation of the Objectors

 

Town Councillor M Wright said that Epping Market was a Royal Charter market, which the Town Council was keen to preserve and had restructured it in 2018. There was an existing fruit and vegetable stall that provided footfall on market day. The market and traders had been tested by the Covid-19 crisis. The Town Council would not allow a second fruit and vegetable stall as too many stalls in the same trade damaged competition. The Town Councillor had been surprised that the stall holder had been allowed to continue to trade before street trading consent had been granted. He was also selling plants, eggs and local honey. The stall was situated on a busy section of the High Street opposite the Tesco supermarket and near a petrol station, so it was not a suitable location for those visiting by car. The Town Councillor added that the stall was a permanent advert, as it was not taken down every evening although it was not open on Mondays, so was a continual reminder.

 

(f)        Questions for the Objectors from the Sub-Committee

 

Councillor S Heather acknowledged the Town Council’s passion to protect Epping Market, but it only traded on Mondays, so by not allowing Fruits of the Forest to trade on Tuesdays to Sundays it was taking choice away. The Councillor asked if the Duke of Wellington was a freehold house and who had the letter of consent come from? Licensing Compliance Officer D Houghton replied that the licensee had provided permission, but Punch Taverns controlled the building. Assistant Solicitor R Ferreira advised that the Licensing Authority’s duty was to grant consent, but it was the applicant’s responsibility to obtain the necessary permission to use the pub car park.

 

Councillor L Mead asked about the set-up and where was the stall sited? The applicant clarified that the stall was at the front of the pub opposite New China on Epping High Street.

 

(g)       Questions for the Objectors from the Applicant / Supporters

 

In response to a query from B Rumsey about the application process and the Licensing Authority’s decision to allow the stall holder to continue trading, P Jones, Licensing Compliance Officer, replied that the decision was not made by Licensing but at a higher level, and that he was being allowed to trade because of the Covid situation. Councillor H Whitbread advised that a meeting with the Portfolio Holder, Councillor A Patel, had been held which she had attended with Councillors N Avey, L Burrows and C Whitbread and the relevant director. The Portfolio Holder’s decision was that Mr Summerson could continue to trade while his application was going through.

 

Councillor H Whitbread asked how many Town Councillors had supported the objection to this application and how was the vote run? B Rumsey, Epping Town Council Clerk, replied that as there had been no time to hold a Council meeting, the vote had been held as a recorded email vote and that all Town Councillors except three voted in support of objecting to the application.

 

(h)       Closing Statement from the Objectors

 

Epping Town Councillor M Wright emphasised that he had a passion for Epping Market, it was a very important market and the Town Council gave it its full support. The applicant had started trading without Street Trading Consent and this should not be granted under any circumstance.

 

(i)            Closing Statement from the Applicant

 

Mr K Summerson said that he wanted to work and was prepared to work hard but he respected people’s opinions. He knew the fruit and vegetable trader at Epping Market, but he had not objected. He had nothing further to add except that if the fruit and vegetable trader gave up his Monday pitch at Epping Market he would consider applying for it.

 

(j)        Consideration of the Application by the Sub-Committee

 

Licensing Compliance Officer D Houghton added that she had previously spoken to the licensee at the pub, who had advised her that she would have to leave the pub by August 2021 because Punch Taverns would be renovating it. Mr Summerson replied that he had since been advised that it would now be October 2021.

 

The Chairman, Councillor R Morgan, advised that the Sub-Committee would proceed into private deliberations to consider the application. Therefore, the webcast was stopped and would resume when the private session was completed.

 

The Chairman stated that the Sub-Committee had taken its decision based upon the merits of the application and the relevant representations received. During their deliberations in private session the Sub-Committee received no additional advice from the Council’s advisory officers.

 

            RESOLVED:

 

            The decision of this sub-committee was that the Consent be granted, subject to the following conditions:

 

(1)        This Authority’s Standard conditions.

 

(2)        The sale of fruit, vegetables, flowers (honey, eggs, local organic farm produce).

 

(3)        Trading hours:

(a)       Tuesday to Friday - 08:00 - 17:00;

(b)       Saturday                - 08:00 – 16:00; and

(c)       Sunday                  - 08:00 – 14:00.

 

(4)        A sufficient number of suitable receptacles with properly fitted covers shall be provided for the purpose of receiving rubbish from business. The receptacles shall be maintained in a clean condition and emptied on a daily basis as a minimum when the hereby permitted use was operational. The receptacles shall be constructed, maintained and located so that access to them by vermin was prevented and arrangements shall be made for regular lawful disposal of their contents by a registered waste carrier.

 

(5)        The public area immediately surrounding the premises shall be regularly cleared of waste food, food containers, wrapping etc, and left in a tidy state at the end of trading on each day. Such refuse shall be removed from the area and disposed of lawfully by a registered waste carrier.

 

(6)        The fruit stall must be situated and operated from the front car park of the Duke of Wellington Public House.

 

The Chairman outlined the reasons for the decision of the Sub-Committee:

 

(1)        The conditions relating to litter were to prevent the creation of a public nuisance and to ensure that waste and litter was collected effectively and legally.

(2)        All of the conditions mentioned above were considered to be reasonable, relevant, appropriate and proportionate.

(3)        Once consent had been granted the Local Authority could vary any conditions attached to it at any time.

(4)        A consent could be revoked but the rules of natural justice must be observed by the Local Authority before any revocation took place.

 

A reminder to the applicant that if any other permission or consent was required to operate from the car park of the Duke of Wellington it was the applicant’s responsibility to obtain same.

 

There was no appeal allowed to the Magistrates Court.