Three local venues have applied for pavement licences to put up tables and chairs outside their premises.

The venues are Blind Jack’s pub and the Subway fast food restaurant in Knaresborough, and the Harrogate Neighbours Community Hub.

Pavement licences are issued by North Yorkshire Council. Most applications are received in warmer months as they allow customers to sit in the sun while they eat and drink.

If granted, the licenses usually last for two years and then need to be renewed. Planning permission is not required.

Blind Jack’s, on Market Place, has proposed a five-table café area outside of the pub. It would cover a six-metre by two-metre area. Two parasols would also be present to provide shade.

Subway, also on Market Place, has applied for a three-table area that covers 1.83 square metres of land. It would not have parasols present.

The community hub, on High Street in Starbeck, wants to add two tables, in a space measuring 2.30 by 1.50 metres. It also does not plan to introduce parasols.

Pavement licences were introduced in 2020, after the first covid lockdown, and were designed to 'provide much needed income for businesses and protect as many hospitality jobs as possible', according to the council's website.