Temporary event notice

You must apply for a temporary event notice (TEN) if you plan to:

• hold a one-off event and carry out a licensable activity at an unlicensed premises
• hold a one-off event and carry out a licensable activity at a licensed premises, if the event is not covered by the premises licence or club premises certificate – for example, holding a wedding reception at a community centre

Licensable activities include:

• supplying or selling alcoholic drinks
• providing entertainment for an audience including playing live or recorded music, performing a play or showing a film
• selling hot food or drink at any time between 11pm to 5am

It’s an offence under Section 136 of the Licensing Act 2003 to carry on or knowingly allow unauthorised licensable activity at any premises.

We’re required by law to maintain a register with details of the licences we issue. You can see this register online or contact us using the details at the bottom of this page to arrange to view the register in person.

Licensable entertainment

Private events are not licensable unless those attending are charged for the entertainment with a view to making a profit (including raising money for charity). For example, a party held in a private home for friends featuring live music where a charge or contribution is made solely to cover the costs of the entertainment would not be regulated entertainment. Similarly, any charge made to the organiser of a private event by musicians, other performers, or their agents does not of itself make that entertainment licensable. It would only be licensable if the guests attending were themselves charged by the organiser for that entertainment with a view to making profit.

The performance of live music or playing of recorded music is not regulated entertainment if it’s ‘incidental’ to another activity which is not itself licensable. Whether or not music is incidental to another activity will depend on the facts of each case. For example, is the music one of the main reasons for people attending the premises or is it advertised as the main attraction? Is the volume of music likely to go over other activities or could it be described as background music? Ultimately, it would be for the courts to consider in any disputed case if music is incidental.

Relevant entertainment is any live performance or any live display of nudity that, ignoring financial gain, can be assumed to be provided solely or principally for the purpose of sexually stimulating any member of the audience. This would include performances of dance such as lap dancing and is regulated regardless of the size of the audience or time of day. An authorisation under the Licensing Act 2003 is needed where relevant entertainment has been provided at premises on no more than 11 occasions in any 12 month period, with none of those occasions lasting longer than 24 hours or taking place within a month of any other such occasion.

Restrictions

You must be 18 or over to apply for a TEN. The event must:

• be attended by less than 499 people, including staff and performers
• last for less than 168 hours or 7 days 
• be followed by a 24-hour break before a further TEN can be served on the premises

If you’re a personal licence holder, you can submit up to 50 TEN applications per calendar year (1st January until 31st December). If you’re not a personal licence holder, you can submit up to five TEN applications. You can apply for multiple TENs at a single time.

Included in this limit is the ability to submit up to 10 ‘late’ applications for personal licence holders per calendar year, or two late applications if you’re not a personal licence holder. A late TEN application is when you apply between 9 and 5 working days before the event. Once you’ve used your allowance of late applications, if you submit a notice less than ten working days before the event it will be returned as void and the activities described in it will not be authorised.

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.

If the licensable activities include the supply of alcohol, the notice must make it a condition that all such supplies are made by or under the person who applied for the TEN (called the premises user).

The premises user must ensure that a copy of the TEN is prominently displayed at the premises or that it’s kept at the premises in their custody. If the premises user asks someone working at the premises to have custody of the TEN, a notice specifying this fact and the position held at the premises by that person must be prominently displayed at the premises.

Apply for a TEN

A TEN costs £21. It’s £10.50 to replace a lost or stolen TEN.

If you live in the South Lakeland area, you can apply for a TEN online.

If you live in the Barrow or Eden areas, fill in the temporary event notice (GOV.UK) and submit it using the relevant contact details at the bottom of this page.

You’ll also need to send a copy of your application to the below responsible authorities. 

Barrow area

Environmental Protection Team, Westmorland and Furness Council

Town Hall, Duke Street
Barrow-in-Furness
Cumbria
LA14 2LD
Environment@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk 

Chief Officer of Police, Cumbria Constabulary

Barrow Police Station
Andrews Way off Phoenix Road
Barrow-In-Furness
Cumbria
LA14 2UE
Southevents@cumbria.police.uk
BarrowNeighbourhoodPolicing@cumbria.police.uk

Eden area 

The Inspector, Penrith Police Station

Hunter Lane
Penrith
CA11 7UT
edenneighbourhoodpolicing@cumbria.police.uk 

Environmental Protection, Westmorland and Furness Council

Voreda House
Portland Place
Penrith 
CA11 7BF
pollution@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk 

Food Health and Safety, Westmorland and Furness Council

Voreda House
Portland Place
Penrith 
CA11 7BF
envhealth@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk  

Withdrawing a notice

You can withdraw your notice up to 24-hours before the beginning of the event by contacting us using the details at the bottom of this page. You’ll need to contact the licensing team for the area in which the notice was applied to.

Street parties

You should make a TEN application to hold a street party at least eight weeks before the proposed date of the party. Applications received later might not be processed in time for you to finalise the arrangements.

Read a guide to organising a street party on GOV.UK

Application outcomes

We’ll issue a standard notice no later than ten working days before the event. A late notice is given between nine and five working days before the event.

The police and our environmental health officers have three working days in which to object to your application on the grounds of any of the four licensing objectives:

• the prevention of crime and disorder
• public safety
• the prevention of public nuisance
• the protection of children from harm

The police or environmental health must give an objection notice explaining why they object.

Objection hearings

If we get an objection notice, we must hold a hearing to consider it – unless we, the premises user and the police or environmental health who gave the objection notice agree that a hearing is unnecessary.  

At any time before a hearing, the police or environmental health may, with the agreement of the premises user, modify the TEN to meet their concerns. Once the TEN has been modified we’ll be sent a copy of the modified notice by the police or environmental health.

At a hearing, if we consider it necessary for the promotion of any of the licensing objectives we may give the premises user a counter notice, stating the reasons for our decision and copying it to the relevant chief officer of police or environmental health. The effect of the counter notice is to stop the event from taking place. If we decide not to give a counter notice, we must give the premises user and the police or environmental health notice of this decision and the event can take place as notified.  

We must make our decision and issue a notice no later than 24 hours before the beginning of the event specified in the TEN.

If the police, environmental health or both give an objection to a late TEN, the notice will not be valid and the event will not go ahead as there is no scope for a hearing or the application of any existing licence conditions.

Contact our Licensing Team