What is an event licence?
If you want to host an event, you’ll need a licence from the local council to hold it. There are lots of different types of licences for different events, so make sure you pick the correct one for your event.
Before looking into the practicalities of event licensing, it’s worthwhile taking a step back to look at the situation from the perspective of the people in charge of the event. In the most blunt and basic of terms, permanent facilities such as pubs and nightclubs are generally heavily invested in their locations and so need to take licensing rules and best practices seriously, as it would usually be devastating for them to lose their licences.
It may not be as catastrophic for managers of one-off events to lose their licences or locations due to their breaking the conditions of their licences. However, holding the correct licence and complying with its conditions can still help avoid all sorts of hassles.
What are the golden rules for obtaining a festival licence?
Here are three golden rules to follow to give you the best possible chance of obtaining the licence you need for your event:
Rule 1: Be as well-prepared as you can before you even start
Fundamentally, whether or not you get a licence depends on whether or not the relevant authorities trust you to run your event properly. Therefore, you want to do as much preparation as possible so as to make a favourable first impression.
At a very basic level, you need to demonstrate that you have thought about how to run your event safely and with minimal inconvenience to other people (eg due to noise, traffic, or litter). For example, having the following in place right at the start can go a long way to smoothing your path with the relevant authorities:
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full insurance (especially employer’s and public liability insurance)
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all relevant safety certificates, and
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provisions for appropriate personnel (eg first aiders, security personnel, and a designated premises supervisor with a personal licence)
Rule 2: Understand exactly what your licensing requirements are
As a rule of thumb, if you are planning on selling alcohol, playing live or recorded music, and/or attracting large crowds, you’re probably going to need some form of licence even if your event is purely held during the daytime. Licences, however, tend to be very specific in nature.
For example, if you’re hosting a festival in a field, you’ll need to determine whether you’ll use the whole field or just a part of it. If the latter, you'll also need to ensure that attendees can easily distinguish between the festival area and the surrounding field. You wouldn’t want your festival goers running through the fields of wheat!
If you’re going to have your attendees camping in a field, you’ll need to decide whether the campsite will form part of your licensed event venue. If not, you’ll need an off-sales licence if you want to sell alcohol for attendees to take back to their tents.
When reviewing your licensing requirements, a good starting point is to determine if your intended site has a suitable license you can use. The keyword here is suitable; check any pre-existing licences very thoroughly to make sure that they are appropriate for your needs.
For more information, read Business licences.
Rule 3: Start your application as early as possible
Assuming you’ve already checked to see that your intended event date is free, you should aim to put in your licensing application at least six months in advance of it. The earlier you start, the better. Most local authorities like to have proposed events checked out by relevant organisations (such as the police and environmental health), and these tend to be people with busy schedules. Give them plenty of time to do their jobs and make their jobs as easy as possible with good preparation.
Is drug testing mandatory for UK festivals?
No, drug testing is not mandatory for festivals in the UK, but it’s increasingly becoming an important optional harm reduction measure.
Festival organisers, working with the police, local councils, and welfare providers through a Safety Advisory Group (SAG), may choose to implement drug testing. This testing analyses substances that have been seized or placed in amnesty bins (secure containers provided for festivalgoers to safely and anonymously dispose of illegal drugs before entering the site), and its purpose is to identify toxic or dangerously high-purity drugs in circulation. If extremely potent or dangerous drugs are detected, public alerts can then be cascaded to festival-goers to help prevent drug-related overdoses and minimise harm.
As a festival organiser, you're responsible for minimising harm from alcohol and drugs. Providing welfare tents, clear harm reduction messaging, and access to free water are standard requirements. While you can't stop illegal drug use, implementing this form of testing is considered by many in the industry to be a responsible, safety-first measure, though it's not a legal requirement for obtaining a licence.
For more information on running an events business, read Starting an event planning business. If you're renting equipment or a site for your event, you can make an Equipment rental agreement or an Event space rental agreement. Do not hesitate to Ask a lawyer if you have any questions or concerns.
