Busking in the UK

AlnmouthAlnmouth Frets: 80
edited October 2018 in Live
A young lad was strumming a guitar in the subway, while his companion played a flute.  Along came two policemen, and the first one asked to see their licence.  The guitar player said something I did not hear, to which the police officer replied "Yes you do".  At this point I left the subway, and do not know whether or not the buskers were arrested.

Now it appears that the law in the UK has changed, and that buskers no longer need a permit.  You used to need a street entertainer licence, obtainable from your local authority.  Nevertheless I recently checked the websites of four local authorities, and could not find any reference to busking permits.  One site had a list of rules for buskers to follow, but made no mention of any paperwork being needed.
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Comments

  • ShrewsShrews Frets: 2958
    https://www.gov.uk/busking-licence

    You may need a licence from your council to busk in England and Wales.

    Looks like it's down to the local authority so the copper might've been right
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  • m_cm_c Frets: 1211
    The subway is not likely to be part of the council's area, and I'd guess it would be the transport police doing the questioning.

    A quick google shows for the London Underground, you do need a license - https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/about-tfl/culture-and-heritage/busking
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  • Different rules for different places, so a location would have been handy. I think it probably boils down to how busy the place is, how good the performance is perceived by the copper, and if it could deemed to be a public nuisance in which case whether they had a licence or not would be irrelevant.
    www.maltingsaudio.co.uk
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  • Thanks for the link.  It looks like a permit is still needed.  Strange though that four websites did not mention them.

    One thing I did find out was that although I am legally allowed to collect money as a busker, I would need an additional permit to actively seek donations.

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  • ShrewsShrews Frets: 2958
    That makes sense, because if you advertise you are busking for charity then you are likely to receive more cash and could ultimately do a runner to the nearest Barclays with it.
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