More Continental-style pavement bars and cafes could be coming to areas near Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth

Many areas to the south of Leamington,Warwick and Kenilworth have moved a step closer to allowing Continental-style pavement bars and cafes across the district.

The Government is set to pass laws in the coming weeks that will allow businesses to apply for pavement licences and council officers have been given the power to put plans in process if legislation is passed before the next cabinet meeting at the end of this month.

Councillors at Stratford District Council - which covers Southam and many villages around the Leamington, Kenilworth and Warwick area - were told at week’s cabinet meeting that the licences would give a boost to the hospitality sector.

A joint report by head of regulatory services Robert Weeks and Phil Grafton, the council’s head of law and governance, explained that the Business and Planning Act was likely to be in force by the time of the next cabinet meeting on July 27.

The report said: “This act will enable applications to be made to the council for pavement licences. The council needs a mechanism in place for determining pavement licensing applications.”

Businesses selling food and drink can apply for a licence that will allow them to put tables, chairs and serving counters on the pavement next to their premises. On applying, the council has just seven days to publish the application on its website to allow comments and consult with the highway authority and neighbours. If the council does not determine the application within this period, the pavement licence will be deemed granted.

The report added: “As the country emerges from lockdown, pavement cafes have assumed a new importance given the scientific evidence of a lower risk of spreading coronavirus outdoors.

“With the re-opening of restaurants, cafes, bars and public houses, the pavement licensing regime set out in the Business and Planning Bill will offer the hospitality sector a simpler

administrative route to providing an outdoor environment for customers.

“The Government hopes this will give a boost to the hospitality sector, which is particularly badly hit by coronavirus, allowing premises to trade to as full an extent as possible given the constraints placed on capacity by social distancing.”

The legislation is expected to confirm that the pavement licences, which will be subject to a £100 application fee, will be a temporary measure with no licence extending beyond the end of September next year.