Licensing Law Consultancy (LLC) recently hosted the first National Licensing Week event in Nottingham to celebrate and raise awareness of licensing and the role it plays in everyday lives.
National Licensing Week (NLW) is an opportunity to celebrate the work that goes on behind the scenes by licensees, operators and regulators which is often invisible to the public until something goes wrong. NLW is designed to change that and raise awareness across the country. The underlying message is that “licensing is everywhere.”
NLW is in its fourth year but this the first event of this kind and on this scale – a party held at St James Hotel on 20 June 2019.
The event was attended by members of the Institute of Licensing, National Licensing Week, Nottingham Business Improvement District, Pub Watch, Hospitality Association, other industry representatives such as the Gambling Commission and leading operators with a local and national presence as well as leading businesses and professionals from all sectors. Guests were treated to canapes, dinner, complimentary drinks all evening and received designer gifts from global fashion retailer, Paul Smith.
The Chair of the Institute of Licensing, Dan Davies said: “I am delighted to support this event and I thank Walaiti Rathore for having the vision and energy to make this happen. Licensing touches the body politic at some of its most sensitive spots – covering areas such as alcohol sales, taxi and private hire, animal premises licensing, gambling and the protection of vulnerable people and much, much more. I think the general public are not fully aware of the role that licensing plays in public protection and Walaiti’s event will have done much to raise that awareness.”
The Chair of the Nottingham Hospitality Association, Richard Johal said: “As someone who is passionate about both Nottingham and the hospitality industry, I was delighted to hear that Walaiti Rathore and LLC chose this great city to hold the event to promote National Licensing Week and the great work they do in the UK. It has proved to be a great idea and was really well delivered by someone who continues to build on the influential contributions made to this industry, both locally and nationally.”
Jeff Allen, Chair of the Nottingham Business Improvement District, said: “The implementation of licensing policy is very important to city centres, and it is great to see LLC taking the initiative to organise this event to raise awareness. We hope it will become a regular event as even in its first year it was extremely well supported by the local business community.”
The Commercial Coordinator of National Licensing Week, Jade Craig said: “I was astonished by this amazing event to promote NLW to a wider audience and share one of the most important messages in our industry. It was an honour to attend and I would like to thank LLC and Walaiti Rathore for conceiving the idea and putting on this event. I could see attendees from a variety of backgrounds engaged in what NLW is about which was brilliant, and we now look forward to working with LLC and Walaiti on a repeat of this event next year.”
The managing director of Licensing Law Consultancy (LLC), Walaiti Rathore said: “I had a vison to hold this event and I am humbled by all the guests who attended as it would not have been possible without them, some of whom travelled long distances to Nottingham to support LLC and this event. A special mention for St James Hotel, Carlsberg, Austin Moore and Partners, Michael Wisher Associates and Paul Smith for their support.
“The idea was not only to involve representatives or members of organisations within or closely connected to licensing but also people from businesses and professionals with no such connections. I felt this was the best way to start to reach out to the wider public and I am pleased with the feedback from guests who found the NLW message to be an eye opener.
“The event has had the desired effect very successfully and this will no doubt create a ripple effect to reach more people and create momentum. Due to this initial success the event will be repeated next June.”
