Late night refreshment licence

If you supply hot food or hot drink to the public between 11pm and 5am, you need authorisation under the Licensing Act 2003. This is known as late night refreshment and it is a licensable activity.

Authorisation is usually obtained as part of a premises licence (alongside alcohol sales or entertainment), but you can apply for a premises licence covering late night refreshment alone if you do not sell alcohol.

What counts as late night refreshment

Late night refreshment is the supply of hot food or hot drink to the public between 11pm and 5am. Food or drink is considered 'hot' if it is heated on the premises or supplied at a temperature above the ambient air temperature, and it is supplied to be consumed hot.

This includes:

• takeaways serving hot food after 11pm
• restaurants serving hot meals past 11pm
• delivery services providing hot food between 11pm and 5am
• late-night cafes serving hot drinks after 11pm
• mobile catering vans operating in the late-night period
• supermarkets or garages heating food for customers after 11pm

Statutory exemptions

Certain supplies of late night refreshment are exempt and do not require authorisation:

• hot food or drink supplied to employees working on the premises, such as in a factory canteen
• supplies to hotel and guesthouse guests staying overnight
• supplies to members and their guests at qualifying clubs, and to members of a recognised trade or profession and their guests
• hot drinks from vending machines, where no person is involved in the supply
• supplies in a vehicle that is moving, rather than parked
• hot food or drink given free of charge
• supplies by or on behalf of a registered charity, or authorised by one
• hot drinks containing alcohol, which fall under the alcohol licensing rules instead

Local authority exemption powers

Since the Deregulation Act 2015, licensing authorities in England and Wales can exempt certain premises from the requirement to be licensed for late night refreshment. A council can:

• Exempt a type of premises (e.g., all cafes in the council area)
• Exempt premises in a specific geographic area (e.g., away from the night-time economy)
• Change the regulated hours in their area (e.g., from midnight to 5am instead of 11pm to 5am)

Not all councils have adopted these exemptions. Check with your local licensing authority whether any local exemptions apply to your premises.

Conditions commonly attached to late night refreshment premises

Licensing authorities frequently impose conditions on late night refreshment premises, particularly takeaways. Common conditions include:

• CCTV covering the premises frontage and serving area
• A litter management plan covering the immediate area
• Restriction on delivery hours
• Requirements for door supervisors at peak times
• A 'last orders' policy to manage queuing

Late Night Levy

If your premises is also licensed to sell alcohol between midnight and 6am, your council may charge a Late Night Levy on top of the annual premises licence fee. Ask your licensing authority whether it operates one, and include it in your costs.