Have your say
A street collection permit is required if the collection is for charitable or similar purposes and the Council will vet the suitability of the applicant and will check that the money collected goes to the stated purpose of the collection. Consideration will also be given to the number of other collections taking place on the appropriate date and to the location of the collection when we consider issuing any permit.
It is often assumed that collections can be held in shop doorways or car parks, without a Street Collection permit, because they are being held on 'privately owned land'. This is not true, as the legislation does not mention the ownership of the land or treat collections on 'privately owned land' as exempt from the licensing regulations. Any place that the public has access to, even though not as a right of way, may be considered as a public place. A Pedlars Licence, issued by the Police cannot be used for this purpose. Only Local Authorities can issue Street Collection Permits under Section 5 of the Police, Factories, etc. (Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1916, as amended by the Local Government Act 1972 and Schedule 29 of that Act.)
There is no cost for the issuing of consent but there are rules to be followed in applying. Click on the following link for a copy of the Street Collection Regulations.
Street Collections are usually made by Charities. Collections usually take place in town centres on busy shopping days. Money is collected in sealed collection tins. There are regulations, which govern this type of collection. Permits are restricted to enable charities to raise money without their collections 'clashing' with those of other charities.
The purpose of the legal requirement to obtain a permit is to ensure collectors are properly authorised and that money is collected in a secure way and the total proceeds collected are properly accounted for.
Making an application
If you would like to apply for a permit either contact us and we will send you an application form or down load and complete the attached form. Please contact us before submitting your application so that we can check the availability of your preferred date.
