Ensuring premises selling alcohol meet their licensing requirements

Alcohol Licensing Officers at Community and Public Health monitor premises with alcohol licences and assist the local Medical Officers of Health to enquire into and report on proposed licence applications or renewals.

Medical Officers of Health report on all applications under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 for:

  • On Licences such as pubs, restaurants, cafes, and bars;
  • Off Licences including supermarkets, bottle stores and wineries;
  • Club Licences such as sports clubs, RSAs, and working men’s clubs; and
  • Special Licences – short term licences for particular events at normally unlicensed premises or locations, or to alter the conditions of a licences to allow for particular events.

The primary focus of these enquiries is the suitability of the applicant, including preventing alcohol-related harm and host responsibility.

Alcohol Licensing Officers collaborate with the Police and Licensing Inspectors from local councils as part of these enquiries, and when monitoring premises or running Controlled Purchase Operations. Controlled Purchase Operations (CPOs) involve visiting licensed premises and testing their procedures to ensure that:

  • minors are not supplied with alcohol; and
  • appropriate food is promoted and available – to meet legal requirements.

Find out more about the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 including the changes made in December 2013.

Are yout staff trained in host reponsibility? ServeWise.Training is available for sellers and servers of alcohol

Community and Public Health’s Alcohol Licensing Officers support Licensed Controller Qualification training  – a requirement for a Duty Manager’s Certificate.

Online training for sellers and servers of alcohol is available through ServeWise. ServeWise is a free national e-Learning tool for both on- and off-licensed premises. The modules focus on intoxication, minors, server intervention and host responsibility. The training programme takes a total of an hour to complete.

Documents

Links

Contact your local CPH office for further information:

CANTERBURY
Ph: +64 3 364 1777
Fax: +64 3 379 6125

SOUTH CANTERBURY
Ph: +64 3 687 2600
Fax: +64 3 688 6091

WEST COAST
Ph: +64 3 768 1160
Fax: +64 3 768 1169

Have your say on alcohol in your community

There are many ways you can have your voice heard on alcohol in your community. You might have a specific concern or there might be an opportunity to take action.

Find out about alcohol license applications on your local Council website:

Order Alcohol signage for bars, restaurants and sports clubs

Several signs are available from the Community Health Information Centre.

The Law: We can't service or allow intoxicated people on our premises (DRU0157).

Page last updated: 20/10/2020

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