Temporary event notice

You can submit a temporary event notice (TEN) if you wish to offer licensable activities in an unlicensed premises on a temporary basis. Licensable activities include:

• selling alcohol
• serving alcohol to members of a private club
• providing entertainment, such as music, dancing or indoor sporting events
• serving hot food or drink between 11pm and 5am

You will also need to submit a TEN if you wish to offer a licensable activity that is not included in the terms of your existing licence – for example, if you wish to hold a wedding reception at a community centre.

Holding an event without a valid licence is a criminal offence, and you can receive a fine and up to six months’ imprisonment.

Restrictions

Events authorised by TENs:

• last for no more than 168 hours (seven days)
• have no more than 499 people in attendance at any one time, including the staff running the event
• have a gap of at least 24 hours between them if they are separate but consecutive events

Number of TENs you can submit

You need a TEN for every event you hold at the same venue. You can only submit a TEN as an individual, not an organisation.

You can submit up to five TENs a year (this number increases to 50 if you hold a personal alcohol licence).

A single premises can have up to 15 TENs applied for in one year, as long as the total length of the events is not more than 21 days.

Late TENs

Late temporary event notices can be submitted between five and nine clear working days prior to the event (excluding the event day and the day the notice is submitted). TENs received where there is less than five clear working days between the day of the event and the day the TEN is submitted will be rejected. If you do not hold a personal licence, you can submit two late TENs per year. If you do hold a personal licence, the limit is 10. Late TENs count towards your total number of permitted TENs.

Submit a TEN

You must submit your TEN to us no later than 10 working days before your event is due to take place. Please note that if two local authorities govern the area where the event will take place, you will need to notify both. 

You will need to pay a fee of £21 when you submit your TEN. This fee is to cover the processing of the application and is non-refundable in the event that the notice is withdrawn, invalid or subject to a counter notice.

What happens next

After we receive your TEN, we will send an acknowledgement and we will then consult with the police and Environmental Health about your event. The police and Environmental Health have three days to state any objections to your notice. If there are no objections, you will be able to hold your event.

If there is an objection from the police or Environmental Health, our licensing committee will hold a hearing to discuss your notice. The committee will approve, add conditions or reject your notice. If you disagree with the licensing committee’s decision, you can appeal to a magistrates’ court within 21 days of and no later than five days before your event.

If the police or Environmental Health object to a late TEN, the notice will not be valid, and you will not be able to hold the event.

Advertising requirements

You must keep your TEN in a safe place where the event is held. You must also display a copy of the notice in a clearly visible place at the venue.

Current TENs

For a list of all current TENs, see our Licence Register.