Anyone who obtained a Personal Licence in 2009, when the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 first came in to force, will need to apply to their local authority to renew their licence and provide evidence of completing refresher training ahead of the 10 year renewal date of 1 September 2019.
The Scottish Government have contracted People 1st to carry out a review of the specification that the SCPLH and Refresher qualifications are based on. A draft document from the Scottish Government has been issued with the final version expected to be published by the end of the month.
Advice to Personal Licence Holders in the draft document is detailed below:
What do I need to do now?
To make this as straight-forward as possible, the Scottish Government is recommending to licence holders and Boards that these processes should be dealt with at the same time, by sitting the refresher training course and then sending the certificate to the relevant Licensing Board along with the renewal application.
When should I apply for the refresher training?
There is likely to be high demand for the half-day refresher training as we approach the refresher and renewal deadlines. Personal licence holders are, therefore, encouraged to book a place on the refresher training now to ensure that this is completed ahead of the 5 year refresh deadline and the deadline for submitting renewal applications.
The currently available half-day refresher course is the appropriate course to take for the refresher training. Work is underway to update both the half-day and the separate full-day refresher courses, however, there is no need for personal licence holders to wait for the new courses to be available. Certificates from existing courses will be acceptable for the 5 year refresh and 10 year licence renewal.
When should I apply for my 10 year renewal?
Through the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015, the Scottish Parliament significantly extended the period in which personal licence holders can apply for their 10 year licence renewal and for Boards to consider applications. If your personal licence is due for renewal on 1 September 2019, the absolute deadline for submitting a personal licence renewal application is 31st May 2019. However, leaving it this late puts you at a real risk of losing your licence. Boards only have a narrow window to consider applications. If a lot of applications come in at the last minute then yours may not be approved in time. It is therefore important that you book on your course now and prepare to lodge your renewal application along with your new training certificate as soon as possible.
What happens if a premises manager’s personal licence ceases to have effect?
If a designated premises manager’s (i.e. a person named on a licence as the day to day manager) personal licence ceases to have effect, notice must be given to the relevant Licensing Board within 7 days, in order to activate a 6 week window where alcohol can still be sold to allow time for another person with a valid licence to be named. If that notice is not given within 7 days, alcohol sales must cease until such time as a new manager with a valid personal licence is named. If the 6 week period passes with no new manager being named, then alcohol sales must cease until such time as a new manager with a valid personal licence is named. If this affects you, you are strongly advised to seek independent legal advice.
Will there be a form or a fee?
The form is the standard personal licence application form, available on your Licensing Board’s website. There are relevant sections to complete if your application is a renewal.
A fee is likely to be set for lodging the renewal application. The Scottish Government is currently consulting on setting a £50 fee – although this is subject to change. You do not need to wait for the renewal fee to be confirmed to book on the relevant refresher training.
The consultation on a renewal fee closes on 15th August and is available at