A pint at the village barbecue could become a thing of the past

If halls want to hold more than 12 events, many of which raise money for charity, they will have to apply for a fuller licence with a named licensee.

With volunteers often running halls, finding people willing to take on the responsibility is proving difficult.

People currently running halls fear a drop in income or possible closure.

Under the present licensing system, halls can apply through local magistrates for an occasional alcohol licence for a particular event as many times as they like.

There's an awful lot of village halls that are struggling, if not already closed Barbara Rodd, chair of Pentyrch Village Hall

But the change in the law will limit halls to 12 occasional applications.

Beyond that, they will have to apply to their council for a full licence, which requires them to name a licensee who must then be at the hall whenever alcohol is sold.

Village hall committees have reported problems in finding people to take on the responsibility as licensee.

They have said that without a licence, they will not be able to sell alcohol at many events, meaning less money will be raised.

'Concerns'

Barbara Rodd, chair of Pentyrch Village Hall, Cardiff, said the venue staged at least one event a week where alcohol was sold.

A recent quiz night, run by the Women's Institute to raise money for charity, made �300.

"That fundraising would have been very, very much more difficult without the sale of alcohol," Mrs Rodd said.

"There's an awful lot of village halls that are struggling, if not already closed, and I know that a large number of them are very concerned about how they will keep going.

"They aren't funded by councils and the way that you raise money is by fundraising, and people will come and buy a drink."

At Lisvane Memorial Hall in Cardiff, a VE night in May raised more than �1,800 for Cancer Research Wales - �1,034 of which came from the sale of alcohol.

Fines

Chairman Peter Gough said he wants to apply for a full licence for the hall, where about 31 events serving alcohol were held in 2004, but has encountered problems.

"A full licence has a requirement that there's a licence holder, effectively, who has to be on the premises at all times when alcohol is sold," he added.

"We haven't had anybody volunteer to do it. It really is asking too much of any individual person to take on the responsibility.

"The financial fines and such like for transgressions are quite enormous and would be most onerous on anybody."

Cardiff council's licensing officer, Keith James, said he understood that village hall committees found the changes in the law unfair.

"Under the new legislation, there's no differentiation between a pub and a nightclub and a village hall," he said.