PRACTICE AREA

Licensing

Overview

Clear, commercial licensing advice across regulated sectors

From securing your first premises licence to defending a review at short notice, our Licensing team helps businesses operate smoothly, stay compliant, and achieve their commercial goals. We act for national groups, developers, and independent operators across healthcare, construction, infrastructure, energy, real estate development, and food & beverage, providing end-to-end support on alcohol and entertainment licensing, pavement licences, and event permissions.

Why choose Acuity?

Deep sector expertise
Our team brings market-leading experience advising healthcare providers, developers, hospitality operators, and infrastructure businesses on complex licensing matters.

Strategic approach
We engage with licensing authorities, stakeholders, and responsible bodies early to minimise objections and delays.

UK-wide coverage
Acting across England and Wales, with trusted partner support for Scottish matters.

Joined-up advice
Integrated support across licensing, planning, real estate, regulatory, corporate, and disputes.

Transparent fees
Where possible, we offer fixed or staged pricing for greater certainty and control.

Our key sectors

We understand the licensing challenges unique to regulated and fast-moving industries:

Healthcare
Advising hospitals, care providers, pharmacies, dental practices and private clinics on alcohol licensing and regulatory overlaps with CQC and NHS frameworks.

Construction & Infrastructure
Helping developers navigate licensing at planning and build stages, ensuring permissions align with project timetables.

Energy
Guiding operators on licensing implications for major energy and renewables projects, including public access and on-site facilities.

Real Estate Development
Supporting investors and developers with licensing due diligence, portfolio strategies, and fast-track licensing for mixed-use schemes.

Hospitality
Acting for restaurants, hotels, bars, and national operators on new licences, variations, TENs, outdoor trading permissions, and licence reviews.

What we do

Licensing strategy & applications

  • New premises licences and provisional statements
  • Full and minor variations (layout, hours, and conditions)
  • DPS changes and licence transfers
  • Personal licences and training for managers
  • Temporary Event Notices (TENs) and permissions for large-scale events
  • Licensing due diligence for acquisitions, developments, and investments

Regulatory & contentious matters

  • Licence reviews, summary reviews, and appeals
  • Hearings before licensing sub-committees and Magistrates’ Courts
  • Closure notices, enforcement action, and urgent applications
  • Compliance audits, operational risk assessments, and policy development
  • Stakeholder negotiations with police, local authorities, and residents

Public realm & trading footprint

  • Pavement licences and outdoor seating permissions
  • Street trading and market consents
  • Strategies for cumulative impact zones and late-night levies

How we work

Early risk mapping
Identifying hotspots early, from operating hours to cumulative impact considerations

Stakeholder engagement
Building relationships with authorities and residents to reduce friction

Evidence-driven approach
Drafting schedules, dispersal plans, and impact assessments to support applications

Advocacy ready
Experienced representation at hearings, reviews, and appeals

Speak to us

Whether you’re launching a new venue, planning a major development, managing a regulated healthcare site, or scaling a national portfolio, our Licensing team can help you stay compliant and unlock commercial opportunities.

Pricing

Clear, upfront pricing for licensing work

We understand that cost certainty matters. That’s why we offer transparent, upfront pricing wherever possible for our licensing services. Whether you’re applying for a new premises licence, defending a review, or managing a multi-site rollout, we’ll agree the scope and costs with you before we start work—so there are no surprises.

Typical pricing

While every matter is unique, the following examples give an indication of our usual pricing for standard licensing work. All fees are exclusive of VAT and disbursements (e.g. application fees, advertising costs, expert reports, or counsel’s fees):

  • New premises licence: £2,000 – £3,500

    Application fee: £100–£635 + public notice costs

  • Minor variation to an existing licence: £750 – £1,500

    Application fee: £89 + public notice costs (if any)

  • Full variation to an existing licence: £1,500 – £3,000

    Application fee: £100–£635 + public notice costs

  • Temporary Event Notices (TENs): £350 – £750

    Application fee: £21 per TEN

  • Personal licences: £350 – £500

    Application fee: £37 + training costs (if applicable)

  • Pavement licences / outdoor seating: £500 – £1,000

    Application fee varies by authority

  • Licensing due diligence for acquisitions / developments: £1,500 – £3,500

    No standard disbursements

  • Contested hearings or reviews: From £3,500

    Counsel’s fees + expert reports (if required)

How we structure our fees

We aim to provide certainty and flexibility:

  • Fixed fees – Offered for straightforward matters like new premises licences, TENs, and personal licences.
  • Staged fees – Ideal for larger projects or portfolio rollouts, breaking costs into phases (e.g. scoping, drafting, hearings).
  • Hourly rates – Applied where matters are highly complex, urgent, or unpredictable. We’ll always provide an estimate in advance.
Disbursements

Most licensing applications involve additional third-party costs, which we manage transparently on your behalf:

  • Application fees (set by local licensing authorities)
  • Advertising costs for public notices
  • Expert reports (e.g. acoustic assessments, crowd management plans)
  • Counsel’s fees for contested hearings and appeals
Why choose Acuity?
  • Transparent pricing – Fixed or staged fees wherever possible
  • Sector-specific expertise – Healthcare, construction, infrastructure, energy, real estate development, and food & beverage
  • Proactive cost management – Early scoping to avoid unnecessary hearings or objections
  • National coverage – Acting across England and Wales, with trusted partner support for Scotland
Next steps

For an upfront cost estimate tailored to your licensing requirements, get in touch with our Licensing team.

Key contact

Luke Elford

Licensing consultant

Sarah Taylor

Licensing consultant

Work highlights

  • Securing licences for a multi-site healthcare operator, balancing CQC and local licensing frameworks
  • Advising on licensing strategy for a major mixed-use real estate development in a cumulative impact area
  • Delivering national rollout licensing programmes for high-growth restaurant and bar groups
  • Acting for infrastructure developers on site-specific permissions linked to large-scale energy projects
  • Successfully defending a contested licence review for a flagship hospitality venue

360-degree support

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