To consider the report of the Service Lead - Environmental Health & Community Safety.
Minutes:
The Chair introduced the Committee. The Solicitor set out the procedure, the Council’s policy and the requirements under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982.
The Principal Licensing Officer, presented the report which advised the Committee that the applicant was seeking approval to engage in street trading on Cofton Road, selling a selection of foods including, breakfasts, burgers and jacket potatoes, for a three month period. The Applicants had specified Cofton Road as the only suitable location for trading and had applied for a consent to trade Monday to Saturday between 07:30 and 15:00 hours.
The Applicants had submitted a photograph of the proposed purpose-built food trailer and had registered the business with Environmental Health for food hygiene purposes, which had been inspected in August 2019 receiving a 5 out of 5 rating.
The Applicants were attendance and spoke in support of the application, stating that they were familiar with the Marsh Barton area and had a good understanding on running a catering business. They had a passion for providing healthy food, using local produce and confirmed they had received a five star rating for food hygiene excellence. The food would be served in biodegradable boxes and the Applicants confirmed that the signs on the van, had been removed.
In response to questions from Members and the Legal Advisor, the Applicants responded:-
· The food van had removed all signage and was now a plain white vehicle which would be selling locally sourced produce;
· They were aware that the food trade was currently in low demand because of the coronavirus but were optimistic that the trade would pick up again;
· They would be advertising through various using social media platforms, rather than delivering flyers;
· The type of biodegradable packaging was being finalised, but there would be 10% discount to customers who returned food boxes or cups as an incentive;
· Safety measures during the coronavirus pandemic, would include the use of a set entrance and exit queuing system for customers to ensure they kept two metres apart, payments would be taken through a card machine and hand sanitizer would be provided to customers and staff. There was also the option for delivering food to customer homes;
· They were aware of the increase in dietary requirements for celiac and gluten intolerant customers and dietary requirements for food allergies would be catered for and advertised accordingly;
· They were looking to get permission to leave the van parked onsite or arrive early each day to ensure there was a suitable location to trade from;
· Quotes had been provided from insurance companies for public liability insurance but could only be issued once the street trading licence was granted;
The Principal Licensing Officer explained that the catering van would not be able to remain on a public highway overnight and would need to be taken away each day. The Applicants could contact the Council’s Estates team to discuss the option of using vacant Exeter City Council owned land as a possible storage site. It was also explained that providing the business does not change, then the Applicants could speak with the Licensing department about extending the licence beyond three months.
A proposal to add and amend the following conditions were moved, seconded and carried by majority for:-
RESOLVED that the application be approved with the following conditions:
(a) That all of the conditions contained within Appendix A of the Street Trading Policy dated 2015 be included in the consent;
(b) That the consent holder will provide a bin for customer use and that the consent holder will ensure that any rubbish in the vicinity (within 100m of the business), emanating from the business is cleared away at regular intervals;
(c) The use of A boards and flags be prohibited;
(d) The consent holder will not conduct fly posting;
(e) In the event that issues do arise from this consent, then this consent may be revoked by the Service Lead Environmental Health and Community Safety in consultation with the Chair of the Licensing Committee;
(f) That, in line with the Council’s resolution of 24th April 2018, any cutlery, food/ drink containers, and drinking straws used should not be made from single use plastics; and
(g) The Consent holder shall take all reasonable steps to ensure compliance with Guidelines on Social Distancing published by the Government from time to time.