About Special Entertainment Precincts
A Special Entertainment Precinct (SEP) supports live entertainment through extended trading hours for live music venues and specialised noise controls. These provide operational certainty for venues, neighbouring residents and businesses.
Local councils manage sound from premises with amplified music in defined SEP areas. They do this through its precinct management plan. This lets local councils set different sound levels and management processes for areas they want to encourage live music, entertainment and performance.
You can read more about SEPs at the Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner.
Intention to establish a SEP
Local councils are required to notify Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&GNSW) before establishing a SEP. This will help ensure a smooth implementation of the plans for the SEP. It will also help us to carry out our regulatory responsibilities. Councils should also notify us if the boundary of the new precinct changes later.
Local councils can tell L&GNSW about their intent to establish or change a SEP in their local area by completing the Local council’s notice of intention to establish a special entertainment precinct form.
Precinct management plans
As part of setting up a SEP, local councils must prepare a precinct management plan that includes a sound management framework. The framework sets out how they will regulate amplified music from premises in the SEP. For example, this may include fixed or defined decibel levels designed for a specific sound category area or zone.
The precinct management plan must:
- set out the trading hours for premises in the SEP
- include that the management of noise disturbance complaints about licensed venues in the SEP under the Liquor Act 2007.
Some conditions of development consent no longer have effect if they do not align with the precinct management plan.
These conditions cover trading hours and amplified music, like the LA10 noise criteria. All other development consent conditions that aren’t part of the precinct management plan still apply to licensed venues in the SEP.
Licensed venues in a SEP are exempt from noise pollution laws under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997. This exemption applies if the venue operates in line with the precinct’s management plan.
Managing noise and disturbance complaint
People can still lodge a statutory disturbance complaint under the Liquor Act 2007 against a licensed venue within a SEP. However, there is a higher threshold that applies before a complaint can be upheld.
A statutory disturbance complaint will only be upheld if:
- There is enough evidence to establish that the venue failed to follow the sound criteria or limits set out in the precinct management plan.
- The disturbance to the neighbourhood was ‘unreasonable’. For example, this may include acoustic testing which indicates that the levels of sound from a venue is exceeding the limits set by council.
Liquor & Gaming NSW will work with local councils to resolve noise and disturbance complaints made against licensed venues located in a SEP.
Before a lodging a Noise complaint, we encourage the parties involved to resolve issues in a direct and informal way. This is often the fastest and best way to get a good outcome.
To learn more about managing complaints see, the Guide for venues in handling noise complaints and the Guide for residents about noise complaints.