Intro
Effective date: 1 January 2002 Last amended: 3 December 2021 Next review: December 2023
This policy is designed to provide information in regard to the subject matter covered, and with the understanding that the Director of Liquor Licensing is not passing legal opinion or interpretation or other professional advice. The information is provided on the understanding that all persons undertake responsibility for assessing the relevance and accuracy of its contents.
As a general rule, conditions consistent with this policy will be imposed:
With respect to licences, permits or approvals granted for events where more than 1000 persons are expected in the licensed area at any one time, conditions consistent with this policy may be imposed.
Crowd controller requirements will be determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the nature of the licensed premises/event and the initiatives proposed by the applicant to mitigate risk. The licensing authority may determine that the security requirements can be met through the use of a combination of licensed crowd controllers, approved managers or responsible service of alcohol marshalls. However, a minimum number of crowd controllers determined by the licensing authority may be required.
2. Where crowd controllers are required, those crowd controllers will be responsible for monitoring the licensed premises and the behaviour of patrons arriving and departing the premises from a specified time (which is generally 8 pm or the time of opening the premises if after 8 pm) and up to one (1) hour after trading ceases.
3. For permanent licences that trade beyond 1am, a CCTV surveillance system is required to be operational and recording from 8 pm (or the time of opening the premises if after 8 pm), until one (1) hour after trading ceases.
4. In cases, where a licence, permit or approval is granted for an event where more than 1000 persons are expected in the licensed area at any one time, a CCTV surveillance system may be required to be operational and recording for the duration of the event depending whether the event is considered high risk.
a) The CCTV surveillance system is required to provide vision/footage that aims to identify people entering and exiting a licensed premises, as well as assisting the licensee to monitor crowd movement at all entrances and exits of the licensed premises. Furthermore, the system must comply with the current Australia and New Zealand Police Recommendations for CCTV Systems.
b) Images recorded via the CCTV surveillance system must be retained for 28 days (or such period as the Director of Liquor Licensing specifies) and must be made available for viewing and/or exporting and removal by the Police or other persons authorised by the Director.
c) The recorded vision when viewed or exported for removal must include:
i) Time/date stamp
ii) Camera location
iii) Camera identifier
iv) Watermarking or method of verifying the original image for authenticity ensuring tamper prevention.
d) The details of any incident must be recorded in the Incident Register for the licensed premises.
The licensee and approved manager are responsible for the management and storage of the surveillance images and the general effectiveness of the system. Therefore, only the licensee, the approved managers, the police or other persons authorised by the Director of Liquor Licensing, are authorised to access stored images and recordings.
5. Licensees are expected to develop and implement a communication strategy that enables crowd controllers to be able to effectively and clearly communicate with each other and management on duty throughout the duration of trading.
While the activities of crowd controllers may be governed by a number of pieces of legislation, the Securities and Related Activities (Control) Act 1996 provides for the licensing of persons engaged in work relating to:
Under the Liquor Control Act, a person who holds a crowd controller’s licence and is employed, or contracted to provide crowd control services, at licensed premises does not automatically have the authority to remove a person from those licensed premises. The crowd controller must be specifically authorised in writing by the licensee or manager to do so, in accordance with section 126C(2) of the Act and he/she must have successfully completed the nationally accredited course in the Responsible Service of Alcohol. Please refer to the Director’s Mandatory Training policy for further information.
The template example of the written authorisation is available for download: Crowd controller notice of authorisation form
The Surveillance Devices Act 1998, and its associated regulations, regulates "…the use of listening devices in respect of private conversations, optical surveillance devices in respect of private activities, and tracking devices in respect of the location of persons and objects…".
The Western Australian Police has adopted the ANZPAA CCTV Recommendations as the recommended guidelines for CCTV surveillance systems. A copy of this document can be downloaded from the following website: Australia and New Zealand Police Recommendations for CCTV Systems.
Licensees considering the use of CCTV surveillance systems and various security resources, should familiarise themselves with the above legislation and ensure that CCTV systems meet the ANZPAA Recommendations for CCTV Systems to increase the likelihood of successful prosecution due to good quality CCTV evidence.
System installation must be carried out by experienced, qualified and licensed security system installers. For guidance on appropriate installation, licensees can contact the Security Agents Institute of Western Australia (Security Agents Institute of Western Australia) on 61 8 9427 0814 or email info@saiwa.asn.au
The system supplier should be selected in accordance with reputation and experience and most importantly, have reliable backup (for example preferably maintenance and support systems in Western Australia). Systems should be regularly maintained by a licensed technician.
Section 116A of the Act requires that the licensee must maintain on the licensed premises a register of incidents that take place at the licensed premises. For guidance on the requirements relating to these registers, please refer to the Director’s policy Incident Register at licensed premises which can be downloaded from the department’s website.
For general advice on the implementation and application of the policy on Safety and Security at licensed premises, licensees should contact the Department of Local Government Sport and Cultural Industries on telephone 61 8 6551 4888 or email rgl@dlgsc.wa.gov.au
For advice on the choice of CCTV surveillance systems, appropriate installation, and for details of licensed installers and technicians, licensees can contact: