Community Impact Statements

A Community Impact Statement (CIS) is required for many applications made to the NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (the Authority) for a liquor license. A CIS gauges the potential impact of the grant or removal of certain liquor licenses on the community. A CIS is also required to be undertaken for licence related authorisations, such as extended trading hours or primary service authorisations, where liquor can be served to customers without the requirement that they, for example, consume a meal.

The liquor licence application or licence related authorisation and the CIS are lodged together and considered concurrently by the Authority. The primary test, namely, whether the overall social impact of the application will be detrimental to the well-being of the local or broader community, is addressed through the community engagement process which forms part of the CIS.

The CIS summarises the views of the community through consultations with a number of government agencies or bodies, special interest groups and neighbouring premises. We uniquely address many of the consultation requirements of the CIS by directing identified persons, organisations or groups to our website where additional information is provided concerning the proposal and where an on-line survey can be completed to provide community feedback.

The CIS is designed so that the Authority can consider the likely impact and gauge the level of community support for an application. A properly prepared and carefully thought through CIS identifies all relevant impacts specific to the type of liquor licence application or licence related authorisation sought and assists with the application’s success.

Whilst the concept of a CIS accompanying a liquor licence application or licence related authorisation was introduced in NSW on 1 July 2008, the process of determining the likely impact of granting certain liquor license applications in NSW has been required since August 2004.  Our experience in this area is second to none. Please do not hesitate to contact Tony Schwartz for an obligation free discussion or quote.

Click here to take our online Community Impact Statement survey