Guide · outside
Pavement licences for restaurants in England: tables outside, step by step
Tables on the pavement in England need a pavement licence from the council. Since 31 March 2024 the scheme has been permanent: a capped fee, fourteen days for the public to comment, fourteen days for the council to decide, and a licence that normally runs for two years. Apply in late winter and the tables are out before the first warm weekend.
Published · For restaurants in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements: ask your council. Not legal advice.
What a pavement licence covers
A pavement licence lets a business that sells food or drink — a restaurant, café, pub, bar or snack bar — put removable furniture on the highway next to its premises. The government's guidance lists what counts: counters or stalls for serving food or drink, tables, chairs and benches, and umbrellas, barriers and heaters used for eating and drinking outside (sections 1.5 and 1.6).
Two things are outside it. Furniture has to be removable, so a fixed planter or a built bench is a different permission; and advertising boards are not covered (section 1.7). The process described here applies to England only (section 1.10).
A granted licence also brings deemed planning permission for what it covers, for as long as it runs (section 1.13), so you do not need a separate planning application for the same tables and chairs.
Before you apply: measure the pavement
Every licence carries a national no-obstruction condition. The guidance points to the government's Inclusive Mobility standards: under normal circumstances a clear width of 2000mm is the minimum that should be left, and 1500mm is the minimum acceptable distance between two obstacles (section 4.1). Measure from the edge of your furniture, chairs pushed out, not from the table legs.
Look along the pavement as someone with a buggy, a wheelchair or a white cane would: the bin, the lamp post, the bus stop and the next café's barrier all eat into the route. The licence area that works is the one left after those.
There is a smoke-free seating condition too: you make reasonable provision for seating where smoking is not permitted (section 4.2). Decide which tables those are before you draw the plan.
The application, step by step
- 1
Draw the area and the furniture
A plan showing the licence area, the tables and chairs, the barriers and the clear route left beside them. Your council's form says what else it wants, such as insurance details or photographs.
- 2
Pay the council's fee
Each council sets its own fee, within a cap fixed by Parliament; the next section gives the two figures.
- 3
Put up the site notice the same day
On the day you apply, fix a notice to the premises where the public can easily see and read it, and keep it up for the whole consultation (section 6.1). The guidance includes a template.
- 4
Wait out the consultation
The public has 14 days, excluding public holidays, to comment (section 1.4). Neighbours, the highway authority and others may respond.
- 5
The council decides within 14 days
The determination period is 14 days from the end of the consultation, excluding public holidays. If the council does not decide in time, the licence is deemed granted for two years (section 1.4).
The fee, and how long the licence lasts
The fee is set by your council but cannot exceed the cap in section 2(1A) of the Business and Planning Act 2020: £350 where you already hold a pavement licence for the same premises, and £500 in any other case. The Secretary of State can change both figures by regulations, so check the Act before you budget.
A licence can be granted for up to two years (section 1.1), and the guidance expects councils to be pragmatic and grant the full two years (section 2.1). Put the expiry date in the diary with three months to spare: the next application goes through the same consultation.
What the licence does not cover: alcohol, and the rules once it is granted
A pavement licence only permits furniture on the highway (section 1.12). Selling alcohol to people sitting at those tables is a licensing matter: check that your premises licence covers drinks served outside, and ask the licensing team before the first sunny weekend rather than after a complaint.
Once the licence is granted, keep to its conditions. If you breach one, the council can serve a notice requiring you to put it right, and it can revoke the licence for a breach, for false or misleading statements in the application, or for failing to display the site notice (section 7.1). The furniture has to stay inside the licence area every day, not just on the day the officer visits.
Running the terrace once you have it
Tables outside are only worth the fee if the bookings and the door know they exist, and know when they do not. A wet Thursday in May should close the terrace without anyone crossing out bookings by hand, and the first warm Saturday should not leave six empty tables outside because nobody told the booking page they were open.
Most restaurants run the terrace as its own little restaurant: its own tables, its own season, its own rule for walk-ins, which on a sunny afternoon are most of its trade. Our guide to walk-ins on a full night covers the door.
The terrace in Slotina
- The terrace is its own area with its own floor plan, drawn to its real size beside the dining room and the bar.
- A service can run only between two dates — the summer season — and be tied to the terrace alone, so booking outside opens and closes with the season.
- On a wet evening the terrace can be closed for the night with a reason, and the dining room carries on as it was.
- A special day, such as a bank holiday with its own hours, replaces the regular week on that date only.
Pavement licences: short answers
Do I need a licence to put tables outside my restaurant in England?
Yes, if the tables and chairs go on the highway, which includes the pavement. A pavement licence from the council covers removable furniture used for eating and drinking outside.
How long does a pavement licence take?
The public has 14 days to comment, and the council then has 14 days to decide, both excluding public holidays. If it does not decide in time, the licence is deemed granted for two years.
How long does a pavement licence last?
Up to two years, and the government's guidance expects councils to grant the full two years.
Does a pavement licence let me serve alcohol outside?
No. It only permits furniture on the highway. Serving alcohol outside depends on your premises licence, so check it with the licensing team.
Sources (checked 4 November 2026; not legal advice)
A floor plan for every room, terrace included · Special opening hours for one date · Pricing