Premises Licence and Personal Licence

If you want to sell alcohol from your brewery — whether that's a taproom, a shop, or selling directly to the public at events — you need a premises licence from your local authority. This is separate from everything HMRC requires. It's the domain of your local council's licensing team, and it comes with its own application process, fees, and conditions.

You may also need a personal licence holder — someone who has passed the relevant qualification and holds an individual licence to authorise the sale of alcohol. The application process involves the council, the police, environmental health, fire safety, and potentially other "responsible authorities" who can all object or impose conditions. Planning restrictions, noise limits, opening hours — it all gets layered on.

If your premises licence application is contested, you could end up at a licensing hearing, arguing your case in front of a council committee. That's time, stress, and potentially legal costs before you've sold a single pint over the bar.