DPS vs Staff Training: What’s Required at Your Venue?
One of the most common mix-ups in licensed hospitality is treating “the DPS” and “staff training” as the same thing, or assuming that sorting one sorts the other. They’re separate requirements, for different people, with different providers. This guide untangles them so you know exactly who at your venue needs what.
The short answer
Two different things often get confused here.
A Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS) in England and Wales, or a premises manager in Scotland, must hold a personal licence. That’s the named individual with day-to-day responsibility for a venue.
Your general staff (the people pouring pints and working the till) need responsible-service training, usually called RSA, not a personal licence.
Different roles, different requirements, different providers. You’ll almost always need both.
What is a DPS (and Scotland’s premises manager)?
A Designated Premises Supervisor is the person named on a premises licence as responsible for the venue’s day-to-day running. Every premises licence that authorises alcohol sales in England and Wales has to name one, and a venue can only have one DPS at a time. The DPS doesn’t have to be on site every hour the venue is open, but they’re expected to be closely involved and contactable.
Scotland works a little differently, and the terminology trips people up. There’s no “DPS” north of the border. The equivalent role is the premises manager (sometimes called the Designated Premises Manager, or DPM), named on the premises licence. As in England and Wales, a person can be the premises manager for only one premises at a time.
The thread that connects both: whether they’re called a DPS or a premises manager, this person must hold a personal licence.
What is a personal licence, and how do you get one?
A personal licence is a separate, higher-level credential held by an individual, allowing them to authorise the sale of alcohol. Getting one involves a recognised licensing qualification and an application to the licensing authority. In Scotland, the qualification has to be one approved by the Scottish Ministers.
This is where the scope is worth being clear: personal licence training is not what ServeWise Online provides. It’s a different course for a different purpose — in England and Wales, the Level 2 Award for Personal Licence Holders (APLH); in Scotland, the Scottish Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (SCPLH) — taken through an approved provider. If your manager needs to become a DPS or premises manager, that’s the qualification to look for.
What is staff (RSA) training?
Staff training is the part ServeWise Online is built for. It’s the responsible-service course every member of your team who sells or serves alcohol should complete — bar and waiting staff, but equally till and shop staff in any venue that sells alcohol.
How much of a requirement it is depends on where you are. In Scotland it’s mandatory by law: under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005, all staff must be trained before they serve alcohol. In England and Wales it’s strongly recommended rather than legally compulsory for general staff. Our Scotland alcohol laws guide and Licensing Act 2003 guide set out each in full. If you’re deciding whether your team needs training, do bar staff need training to serve alcohol in the UK? answers it, and what an RSA is and who needs one explains the term.
The training takes around two hours, is done online, and ends with a Record of Training you keep on file. It’s the proof that your staff know how to check age, refuse service and stay on the right side of the law.
DPS or premises manager vs staff: side by side
So which does your venue need?
Both. They aren’t alternatives. You need one DPS (or, in Scotland, one premises manager) who holds a personal licence, and you need all of your alcohol-serving staff trained. Sorting your DPS doesn’t cover your staff, and training your staff doesn’t give you a DPS. A compliant venue has both boxes ticked.
For most owners, the quickest path is to get the manager their personal licence through an approved provider, and put the whole team through the online RSA course in an afternoon.
Frequently asked questions
Can you be a DPS without a personal licence?
No. A Designated Premises Supervisor must hold a personal licence and be named on the premises licence. The same applies to a premises manager in Scotland.
Is a DPS the same as a personal licence holder?
Not quite. A DPS must hold a personal licence, but not every personal licence holder is a DPS. The DPS is the one named on a particular premises licence as responsible for that venue.
Does a DPS need to be on site at all times?
No. The DPS doesn’t have to be present every hour the venue trades, but they’re expected to be closely involved and reachable, and a premises can have only one DPS at a time.
Do my bar staff need a personal licence?
No. General staff don’t need a personal licence. They need responsible-service (RSA) training, which in Scotland is mandatory and in England and Wales is strongly recommended.
What’s the Scottish equivalent of a DPS?
The premises manager, sometimes called the Designated Premises Manager (DPM). Like a DPS, the premises manager must hold a personal licence.
Sorting your venue? Your DPS or premises manager needs a personal licence — a separate qualification (the Level 2 APLH in England & Wales, or the SCPLH in Scotland) from an approved provider. Your staff need RSA training — that’s us. Train the team online: the Scotland RSA course (mandatory) or the England & Wales RSA course. £35 per person, around two hours, Record of Training included.
