Regulation and Enforcement

1. The regulation and enforcement of both our occupancy agreements and our service standards are taken seriously; we will take appropriate action against anyone who contravenes any of them.  
2. Where you fail to adhere to the terms and conditions of your occupancy agreement, the agreement may be ended in accordance with the agreement terms by written notice. 
3. Where you fail to adhere to the terms and conditions of the service standards, there are four contravention levels:  
   1. Arrears of Charges  
   2. Infringement Notice 
   3. Breach (excluding arrears of charges and serious breach) 
   4. Serious Breach 
4. You are responsible for ensuring that your employees, assistants, and agents fully comply with the terms and conditions of the occupancy agreements and service standards. Any contravention by them may result in action being taken against you by us or any relevant enforcement authority. 
5. We shall not be liable for any loss incurred as a result of any enforcement action taken against you. 
6. We will keep a record of any contravention and action. This may affect the outcome of any future application for occupancy that you submit. 

A: Arrears of Charges 

1. Daily or casual traders who do not pay the daily charges in full upon request will not be permitted to trade at the market again until payment has been received. We may also terminate any occupancy agreement by immediate notice and take any necessary legal and debt recovery action. 
2. Where a licensee does not pay their occupancy charges in accordance with their occupancy agreement, the following process will apply:  
   1. Upon non-payment of charges the market management team will arrange to discuss payment with you. 
   2. If your account falls two weeks in arrears you will be required to attend a meeting with the market management team to make an immediate payment or agree a short-term payment plan. 
   3. If you do not then make payment as agreed, we will issue immediate written notice terminating your occupancy agreement. You will be given up to a maximum of seven days thereafter to remove all your goods and equipment.  
   4. We will then take further legal and debt recovery action. 
3. Where a tenant does not pay their occupancy charges in accordance with their occupancy agreement, the following process will apply:
   1.  Upon non-payment of charges the market management team will arrange to discuss payment with you.
   2.  If your account falls two months in arrears, you will be required to attend a meeting with the market management team to make an immediate payment or agree a short-term payment plan.
   3. If you do not then make payment as agreed, this will be referred to our legal team. Action will be taken to recover the money you owe. Forfeiture proceedings may also be issued.  
4. All other written demands, e.g., invoices must be paid in accordance with the terms provided. Where you do not meet these terms, we will take further legal and debt recovery action. This may also affect the provision of the services you have failed to pay for. 

B: Infringement Notice 

1. We will issue you with an Infringement Notice whenever you fail to comply with the market health and safety requirements. The notice will detail the contravention and remedial action required. You will be charged an administration fee of £55 +VAT for each Infringement Notice issued. For continued non-compliance of the market health and safety requirements you will also be subject to action under Section C ‘Breach’. 

C: Breach 

1. We will issue a written warning whenever we identify a breach of the service standards, which will be kept on your record. This does not include arrears of charges (see Section A ‘Arrears of Charges’) and serious breaches (see Section D ‘Serious Breach’). Warnings will include details of the contravention and instruction regarding any corrective action you need to take. Failure to complete the corrective action within the required timescale will result in a further written warning. 
2. Where you have been issued with three written warnings within a 12-month (one-year) period, we will undertake a disciplinary hearing (see Section E ‘Disciplinary Hearing’). This may include suspending you and / or your employee, assistant or agent from the market pending the outcome of the hearing. You will still be liable for payment of all occupancy charges during this period unless we have agreed otherwise. 

D: Serious Breach 

1. In our opinion, where a significant breach has been or has allegedly been committed, permitted, or caused, we will undertake a disciplinary hearing. We may also immediately suspend you and / or those involved from our markets. This will not require any warnings. You will still be liable for payment of all occupancy charges during this period unless we have agreed otherwise.  
2. Examples of serious misconduct include:
   1. acts of dishonesty, indecency, or violence 
   2. abuse or harassment, notwithstanding the Council’s zero-tolerance approach to any incident involving harassment or abuse against our staff 
   3. any act causing or likely to cause death or personal injury  
   4. a criminal offence or conviction, including where alleged, which brings the Council into disrepute 
   5. a serious health and safety breach 
   6. offering bribes or inducements to Council staff. 

E: Disciplinary Hearing 

1. Immediately following notice, we will start the process of a disciplinary hearing, which will include obtaining your written submission relating to the breach(es), and where necessary: 
   1. undertaking further investigation, 
   2. obtaining written submissions from other stakeholders, 
   3. reviewing CCTV footage, 
   4. meeting with you and your employee, assistant, or agent; meetings will normally be held at the New Smithfield Market office. 
2. Unless further investigation is required, the disciplinary hearing officer will write confirming the outcome of the disciplinary hearing within 14 days (two weeks) of the disciplinary hearing notice:
    
   1. To allow you and / or those involved to continue trading at / attending the market with or without conditions.  
   2. To move to termination / continued suspension. This means you and / or those involved will be prohibited from the market(s) for a minimum of 12-months (one year) and any registration or occupancy agreement may end. 

F: Appeal Against Suspension and Termination 

1. There is no statutory right of appeal against termination of your occupancy agreement and / or your suspension from our markets. However, you may appeal in writing to the Head of Wholesale and Retail Markets at nsmwholesalemarket@manchester.gov.uk within 14 days (two weeks) of the disciplinary hearing outcome. Your appeal must include your current home and email address, your contact telephone number, the reason for your appeal, and your preferred outcome. 
2. An appeal hearing officer, not connected with the disciplinary hearing, will arrange to review the decision within the next 14 days (two weeks). Unless otherwise specified, the effect of the disciplinary hearing will remain in force until the determination of the appeal.  
3. After considering the original evidence (new evidence will not be permitted), the appeal hearing officer will decide in writing on whether to uphold the appeal, with or without conditions. 

G: Review Following Suspension  

Following the expiry of a suspension period, before you can apply to trade at or attend our markets, you must attend a review meeting with us, which you can apply for by emailing nsmwholesalemarket@manchester.gov.uk. Following a review meeting, any permission given to attend / trade at our markets may be subject to temporary conditions and a probationary period. Where we identify any further breaches during the probationary period this may result in a lifetime ban. 

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