Occasional licence

If you hold a premises licence, a personal licence or are from a voluntary organisation and wish to sell alcohol from premises that are not licensed, you may apply for an occasional licence.

An occasional licence will be valid for no more than 14 days.

Application for an occasional licence should be made a minimum of 28 days prior to the date of the occasion for which the licence is required.

Conditions will be attached to a licence.

A voluntary organisation may only be issued with an occasional licence if they have not had more than four occasional licences that last for four days or more or more than 12 licences that last for less than four days and that the licences issued do not cover more than 56 days in a 12 month period.

How to apply

Apply for an occasional licence (Word doc) [94KB]

Please contact us using the contact details below in the first instance.

Conditions and guidance for application:

What happens next?

Before considering an application South Ayrshire Council must have received all the required supporting documentation before the application is considered lodged.

The application will be processed by the Licensing Department who will consult with the Licensing Standards Officer and the Police. If there are no adverse comments, the application may be granted under delegated powers otherwise it will be considered by the Licensing Board. The applicant will be advised of the date of any hearing

Applicants for an occasional licence must be either the holder of a premises licence, the holder of a personal licence or a representative of a voluntary organisation.

South Ayrshire Council will give notice to the local chief constable of the application. The chief constable can serve a notice recommending that the licence would put crime prevention objectives at risk.

If a licensing board has not received any notice from a chief constable, a report from a Licensing Standards officer or a notice of objection or representation from any other person they must grant the application.

If any of these have been received the board must consider if there are grounds for refusal. If so the application will be refused, if not it must be granted.

Hearings may be heard when applications are being considered. If a hearing is not heard the applicant must be given the opportunity to comment on any notice or report.

The following are grounds for refusal:

the premises in the application are excluded premises
there are no exceptional circumstances for allowing the sale of alcohol over a 24 hour period or if the application requests the sale of alcohol off the premises before 10.00, after 22.00 or both
the granting of the application would not be consistent with one or more of the licensing objectives
considering the nature of the activities proposed, the location, character and condition of the premises and the types of people likely to visit the premises it is decided that the premises are unsuitable for selling alcohol

A licensing board must take into account any notice from a chief constable or report of a Licensing Standards Officer.

Notification of a refusal or granting of an application will be given to the applicant, the chief constable, the Licensing Standards Officer and any person who gave a notice of objection or representation. A statement of reason can be requested by any person served with such a notice.

It is in the public interest that the South Ayrshire Council must process your application before it can be granted. We would expect to process your application within 183 calendar days or 131 working days. If you have not heard from us within a reasonable period, please contact us.

What if I have been refused approval?

Please contact South Ayrshire Council using the contact details below in the first instance.

Appeals against the refusal of an application must be made to the local sheriff. Appeals can only be made under one of the following grounds:

the Licensing Board erred in law
the decision was based on incorrect material facts
the Licensing Board acted contrary to natural justice
the Licensing Board used their discretion in an unreasonable manner
if any of the following steps were taken and are disproportionate, that is that at a review hearing of a premises licence the licence was suspended, varied or revoked or the licence holder was given a written warning or that a personal licence was revoked, suspended or endorsed

Consumer complaints

We would always advise that in the event of a complaint the first contact is made with the service provider by you - preferably in the form a letter (with proof of delivery). If that has not worked, if you are located in the UK, Consumer Direct will give you advice or you can contact us directly. From outside the UK contact the UK European Consumer Centre.

Other complaints

If you wish to complain about a licence holder then please use the contact details below.

Who to contact

Licensing Services
South Ayrshire Council
County Buildings
Wellington Square
Ayr KA7 1DR
Tel: 01292 617682

Trade Associations

Not applicable

Objections to a licence

Any person may by notice to the Licensing Board:-

(a) Object to the application on any ground relevant to one or more of the grounds for refusal :-
(1) that the premises to which the application relates are excluded premises
(2) that the application must be refused under section 64(2) (24 hour licence) or section 65(3)(off sales before 10am or after 10pm)
(3)that the Licensing Board considers that the granting of the application would be inconsistent with one or more of the licensing objectives, namely:- Preventing crime and disorder Securing public safety Preventing public nuisance Protecting and improving public health Protecting children from harm
(4)that, having regard to -
(i)the nature of the activities proposed to be carried out in the premises to which the application relates
(ii)the location, character and condition of the premises, and
(iii) the persons likely to frequent the premises, the Board considers that the premises are unsuitable for use for the sale of alcohol, or

(b) Make representations to the Board concerning the application including, in particular, representations-
(i) in support of the application, or
(ii)as to conditions which the person considers should be imposed