The Institute is sad to announce the passing of Stephen Turner

It is with great sadness and a sense of shock that we must report the sudden and unexpected death of Stephen Turner, who died on Thursday 15th May.

Stephen was a solicitor at Hull City Council, having previously worked at other local authorities and in private practice. At Hull he was the licensing and litigation lead solicitor. In that capacity he was a great supporter of the Institute of Licensing and served as Vice-Chair of the North-East Region for many years.

He spoke at many Institute events and training courses; he was the Chair of the Suitability Guidance Working Party for both the 1 st and 2 nd editions, and he was the co-author of the guidance on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. He also spent an enormous time as the Institute lead in trying to resolve the problem of timely police disclosure to licensing authorities.

Stephen was always ready to provide help and assistance in relation to any licensing matter: that might be face-to-face at a meeting, or electronically via the Institute Forum or various licensing WhatsApp groups, and many of you will have benefited from his knowledge and wisdom.

He was an engaging, knowledgeable, witty and charming companion both professionally and personally and his loss will be greatly felt.

We extend our condolences to his widow Christine and his family and friends. The licensing world will be poorer for his passing.