Street Collections and House to House Collections in Stafford Borough
If you wish to collect for charities, either on our streets or house to house, you will need a permit.
Charitable Collections licensing is regulated by two acts of Parliament:
- Police, Factories, (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1916 - this regulates collections of money or sales of articles for charitable purposes in streets and public places.
- House to House Collections Act 1939 - this regulates collections of money, direct debit pledges or other articles made by means of going from house to house.
Charities must obtain a permit or licence from us before a charitable collection takes place. It is advisable to consult our Charitable Collections Policy (pdf 2.6mb) before applying.
The legislation can be found under Related Links on this page.
Street Collections
It is illegal in this country to hold a Street Collection to collect money or sell articles for the benefit of charitable or other purposes without obtaining a Street Collection Licence from us, if that collection is to be held 'in a street or public place'. A 'public place' is a 'place where the public has access'.
Street Collections are only permitted in certain areas of Stafford, Eccleshall and Stone within Stafford Borough and must be carried out on a Saturday.
The purpose of the legal requirement to obtain consent 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.
Apply for a street collection permit.
Complete your street collection return.
House to House Collections
To carry out house to house collections for charitable purposes, you need a licence from us.
Collections generally take place from door to door or from one public house to another.
Some of the larger well-known charities such as Christian Aid or Help the Aged, have a Charity Commission exemption from having to apply for a permit, but most smaller charities (particularly local groups and organisations) need a permit before they can collect money (or articles which they intend to sell later) from door to door.