Licensing newsletter and latest news

Latest news

Premises Licence - fraudulent payment requests - June 2026

Three Rivers District Council has been made aware of fraudulent requests for payment for premises licences. Please note, Three Rivers District Council Licensing Officers would not take payments for an annual premises licence. All payments should be made by following the instructions on the reverse of the invoice. Please report any suspicious requests for payment to Action Fraud online, or by calling 0300 123 2040.

FIFA Men’s World Cup 2026 – Temporary Relaxation of Licensing Hours - June 2026

Be prepared:

Premises licence holders should carefully consider how FIFA World Cup screenings may affect their ability to uphold the four licensing objectives. Factors such as increased capacity, higher levels of intoxication, heightened emotions and the use of outdoor screening, can place additional pressure on safety, crime prevention, public nuisance and the protection of children from harm. It is therefore essential to plan ahead, manage risks effectively and ensure that appropriate controls are in place so that events remain safe, well-managed and compliant with licensing requirements.

Key considerations include:

• Ensuring the police and local authority are informed of any plans that may impact them and the community;
• Checking your premises licence hours and conditions and submitting temporary event notices where required;
• Having sufficient, trained staff briefed on event plans and police concerns;
• Managing capacity carefully, ensuring the premises remains accessible to all;
• Remaining vigilant around serving anyone drinking excessively and to under-18s;
• Preventing illegal drug use;
• Reviewing counter-terrorism measures and ensuring staff know what to look out for;
• Reporting any trouble immediately to the police and Pubwatch (if involved in the scheme);
• Ensuring CCTV is fully operational;
• Keeping noise at a reasonable level, especially outdoors.

For more detailed guidance, please see Managing World Cup 2026 Success - Advice for licensees showing FIFA World Cup football matches, published by the British Beer and Pub Association and shared by the Institute of Licensing.

Relaxation of Licensing Hours:

The government has confirmed that during the men’s football world cup 2026, licensed venues will be able to remain open for longer, so communities can come together at their local licensed premises to support the qualifying home nations (England and Scotland) beyond the group stages.

When a home nation is playing, licensing hours will be extended:

• from 11pm to 1am for kick-offs from 5pm up to 9pm
• from 11pm to 2am for kick-offs after 9pm up to 10pm

for the:

• round of 32
• round of 16
• quarter-finals
• semi-finals
• bronze medal match
• final

Matches starting before 5pm or after 10pm will not benefit from a national extension. Individual licensed on-trade venues can have an individual apply for temporary event notices, so their venue can stay open longer.

If no home nation is playing in any matches that qualify for the extension, the order will not apply.

This instrument will allow licensed premises in England and Wales already licensed to 11pm (subject to their existing licence conditions) to remain open for the sale and supply of alcohol, for consumption on the premises and provision of late-night refreshment.

Are you donating safely to legitimate charities? - July 2025

Donating to charities helps fund the important work that they do, however you want to be sure that you are donating safely, and to a legitimate charity.

Please ensure you check the charity’s name and registration number as well as checking for a collection permit and an ID badge.

For more advice on donating safely: https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/about-fundraising/resources/tips-giving-safely-charity-advice-public

For more information about charitable collections, or to get in contact with our licensing team if you have any questions or concerns: https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/services/licensing/charitable-collections

Single use vapes - 1 June 2025

From 1 June 2025, it is illegal for businesses to sell or supply single-use vapes. It is also illegal to offer to sell or supply single-use vapes, or to stock single-use vapes that you plan to sell or supply. Single-use vapes are also known as disposable vapes.

Read the government guidance to find out what businesses need to do

e-newsletters

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Newsletters

In order to provide important updates and information in a variety of ways, we have created a newsletter which we share with businesses across the district. Please see our previous newsletters below:

Three Rivers District Council Business Newsletter - May 2025 (2.9 MB)