Cumulative Impact Policy Review 2024
The Council is consulting on the future of the Cumulative Impact Policy, whereby it looks at limiting the number of alcohol, and late night refreshment licences within specific areas of Brick Lane and Bethnal Green.
This consultation is required before the Council decides whether to revoke the designations or continue with them.
The consultation surveys for Bethnal Green and Brick Lane will run for 12 weeks commencing on 31st January 2024 and finishing on 25th April 2024 at 23:59 hours.
The objective of the Cumulative Impact Policy is to reduce crime and disorder and public nuisance in areas with a high saturation of licensed premises.
Having a Cumulative Impact Policy means that people wishing to apply for a new or variation of a licence to sell alcohol and/or provide late night refreshment (hot food/drink between 11pm and 5am) must demonstrate that they will not add to or have a cumulative effect on issues such as public nuisance and crime and disorder in the designated areas.
Essentially it means that any applicant that wishes to apply for a licence under the Licensing Act 2003 within a Cumulative Impact Zone must prove that they will not add to the detriment of the area.
In November 2014, the current Cumulative Impact Policy was designated in and around the Brick Lane area. In 2018 second designation was introduced in Bethnal Green. The reason the Council chose to introduce these policies in Tower Hamlets was due to the saturation of licensed premises within this area, alcohol related crime and disorder and public nuisance that was shown to be linked to licensed premises. We now have to consider whether to keep, amend or remove one or both of these policies.
The Cumulative Impact Policy for Brick Lane has been in place now for seven years, and in Bethnal Green for two years. Since its introduction incidents of crime and antisocial behaviour linked to licensed premises within these areas have seen a reduction, though, there has been a slight increase since 2020.
The Review of the Cumulative Impact Policies (Licensing) in Brick Lane and Bethnal Green report looks at the data relating to Crime/Anti-social Behaviour, London Ambulance Call Outs, and Complaints received by the Council between 2020 to end of June 2023. The report and GIS Data Map shows that the evidence supports the retention of and expansion of the Brick Lane Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) at its southern edge, and the removal of the Bethnal Green CIA.
You may also wish to see the Minutes and Report of the Cabinet Meeting on 17th November 2021 where the previous Cumulative Impact Assessments for Brick Lane and Bethnal Green were retained.
The current Cumulative Impact Policy for Brick Lane and Bethnal Green can be found in Appendix 5 of the Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy 2023 – 2028.
In connection with this statutory consultation, we are seeking your views for the Brick Lane and Bethnal Green areas.
