Pavement licence

Last Updated: 4 December 2024

Permanent paving licensing regime

We are currently writing to all premises who hold Pavement Licences which will expire on 30 September 2024.

Pavement Licences enable you to place furniture on the pavement outside of your property to use as part of your business.

The scheme was introduced as a temporary measure to support business recovery after the forced closure of many hospitality businesses due to the Covid pandemic.

Owing to the success of the scheme, earlier this year, Government made pavement licensing permanent through provisions laid out in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA).

The LURA now allows for a two year licence to be issued, along with a longer application consultation period of 14 days, followed by a further 14 day licence determination period.

Pavement licensing policy

We are currently amending the Westmorland and Furness Council Pavement Licence Policy to include the new permanent provisions laid out in the LURA.

The policy will be circulated for public consultation in due course. We welcome you and all interested parties to review and comment on the new proposals. The policy will then be presented to the Council’s Regulatory Committee for their approval.

Transitional arrangements

Please continue using the pavement to which your existing licence applies. Once our new policy is adopted later this year, we will write to you and advise that you will need to apply for a new licence.

If you have any queries relating to the Pavement Licence application process please do not hesitate to contact a member of the Licensing Team via email licensing@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk