Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the previous meeting held on 28 January 2026 were agreed as a true record.

Guidance is available online to Councillors and co-opted members on making declarations of interest

There were no declarations of interest.

Information on matters of urgency is available online

There were no matters of urgency.

To agree any items to be dealt with after the public (including the Press) have been excluded. Thereare no itemswhich officersrecommendshould be dealtwithin thisway.

There were no confidential or exempt items.

The meeting was a hearing under the Licensing Act 2003.

The Chair introduced the members of the Sub Committee and the officers present.

The Sub-Committee’s Legal Advisor, Giles Salter, outlined the procedure for the meeting.

The Sub Committee considered the application for the grant of a time limited premises licence at Dunkeswell Raceway Ltd for a one-day event known as RevFest on Saturday 29 August 2026.

The applicant, present and entitled to make representations, was Mr Peter Jeanes. Mr Jeanes was accompanied by Laura Podilchuk (Event Manager, Kept Events) and Simon Jarman (Facilities Manager / Health and Safety Manager, Dunkeswell Raceway).

None of the interested parties wished to add anything to their written representations.

The Licensing Manager summarised the application as set out in the report and stated that the applicant had advised that the security firm they intended to use was ‘Red Elephant’, this being a change from a previous company.  

There were no questions for the Licensing Manager from the Sub Committee or the applicant. 

The applicant made the case for the application and highlighted the following points:

·         The RevFest event was intended to celebrate 60 years of karting at the circuit, and the organisers were committed to delivering a well-managed and respectful event for the community.

·         The event was planned carefully with concerns in mind including traffic, noise, safety and the overall impact on the community. 

·         The applicant would be attending the Safety Advisory Group to address potential risks and ensure that all licensing objectives were covered. 

·         Ms Podilchuk outlined the measures set out in the Event Management Plan, Noise Management Plan and Traffic Management Plan to mitigate the concerns of residents and agencies.

·         The Raceway had previously hosted events with up to 1,500 attendees and had done so safely and responsibly. 

·         Events such as RevFest allowed people to be creative, express themselves and socialise, helping to reduce tension, anxiety and stress.

Responses to questions from the Sub Committee included the following points:

·         The RevFest event was for a maximum of 3,000 people and overnight camping was available since it was anticipated that some people who had driven would want to have a drink.

·         On the suggestion of Environmental Health, noise levels would be measured at the nearest house and not in the centre of the circuit.

·         An expert would be on site for the duration of the event to monitor and control noise levels, and they were confident that noise would be below 65dB for the whole day. 

·         The applicant was keen to ensure the success of the event and was not willing to consider a break in the loud music at a point between midday and 11pm, since this did not typically occur at festivals and there was a risk of losing people who would not understand why the music had stopped.

·         Due to capacity, it was not possible to safely hold the event indoors.

·         The applicant and SIA security staff would be on site overnight to keep everyone safe and to ensure campers did  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.