Charitable Collections Policy

2.1: Buckinghamshire Council, as the Licensing Authority, is empowered under the House to House Collections Act 1939 and the House to House Collections Regulations 1947 to licence house to house collections for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes. This includes the collection of either money or other property directly from a person’s property or a business premises where some or all of the proceeds are given to a charity.

2.2: The Licensing Authority considers that the collection of direct debit mandate information is included within the definition of proceeds as “money or other property” within section 11(1) House to House Collections Act 1939. A house-to-house collection licence is therefore also required for this type of collection.

2.3: The only exemptions to the requirement to hold a licence are either for those charities that hold a National Exemption Order or where the need for a licence is waived by the Chief of Police. National Exemption Orders are issued direct to the organisation by the Cabinet Office and a list can be found in the Cabinet's guidance for the National Exemption Order Scheme. The exemption allows an organisation to collect in an area without applying for a licence, but it must inform the Council of the dates and areas of any planned collections.

2.4: The need for a licence can be waived by the Chief Constable of the local police area if he is satisfied that the purpose of the collection is local in character and the collection is likely to be completed in a short period. In such cases, the applicant is granted a certificate in the prescribed form and as a result, a licence is not required and the provisions of the Act or Regulations would not apply to that collection.

2.5: An application to carry out a house to house collection may be made for any Buckinghamshire Council Ward. A map of the collection areas (ward boundaries) is at Appendix 2. More than one ward can be specified on an application as part of the same collection.

2.6: Applications must be made on the Council’s prescribed application form.

2.7: Applications will not be accepted more than twelve months in advance of the collection and the requested dates must be specified. Speculative and retrospective applications will not be accepted. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, a minimum of 28 days’ notice must be given between the application and the proposed collection date(s).

2.8: In order to ensure that all charities are given equal opportunities, house to house collection licences will generally be subject to the following restrictions:

• licences will not be granted for periods of longer than 14 days. However charities may apply for licences to be granted for a longer period of up to 28 days during the pre-Christmas period commencing from 1st December. Any application of this type will be determined on its own merits.
• only one house to house collection will be permitted to any one charitable organisation in each calendar quarter (January – March etc.). 2.9 Only one house to house collection will be permitted in each location (Buckinghamshire Council Ward) per day with the following exceptions:
• where collection dates of charities holding an Exemption Order overlap with a collection date granted by the Council to a non-Exemption Order holder
• for small scale collections in a very limited area
• for organised one-day charitable events
• during the pre-Christmas period, such as for the Santa Sleigh 2.10 In order to prevent nuisance to residents, no collection shall take place outside the hours of 09:00 and 20:00 and no contact should be attempted at properties where a sticker or sign is displayed which prohibits cold calling. Applicants may apply for collections to take place beyond 20:00 during the pre-Christmas period (from 1st December). Each application of this type will be determined on their own merits. 2.11 Applications for a house to house collection licence will be dealt with on a “first come, first served” and case by case basis

2.12: Evidence of public liability insurance cover of a minimum of £5 million must be provided with the application.

2.13: The Licensing Authority reserves the right to make more detailed enquiries about all applications where considered appropriate taking into account all circumstances of an application. This could include consulting with Thames Valley Police.

2.14: The responsibilities of licence holders and collectors are set out in the House to House Collections Act 1939 and the House to House Collections Regulations 1947/SI2662. An extract of the Regulations outlining these responsibilities is set out at Appendix 1 to this policy. Licence holders and collectors are expected to comply with these requirements.

2.15: On approval of an application, the applicant will be issued with a licence to be retained during the collection. A copy of this document must be sent to HM Stationery Office to obtain a certificate of authority and the licence holder must also state the required number of collector badges. A copy of the licence should either be scanned and emailed to [email protected] or sent via post to:

TSO Customer Services,
18 Central Avenue,
St Andrews Business Park,
Norwich,
NR7 0HR

HM Stationery office can be contacted by phone on 0333 202 5070 for further information. Licence holders should allow at least 5 working days for HM Stationery Office to process requests.

2.16: The key responsibilities relating to a collection are as follows:

• any collection must be authorised by the Licensing Authority and a licence issued
• all collectors must be over 16 years old
• each collector must wear a badge and carry a certificate of authority
• collectors must produce their badge on demand to the occupant of any house, any police officer or an authorised officer of the Council
• if a collector is carrying a collecting box, it must be sealed, numbered and clearly display the name of the charity or fund which is to benefit
• no collection must be undertaken in a manner that would inconvenience or annoy any person

2.17: The key responsibilities following a collection are as follows:

• collectors must not be given access to the contents of collection boxes prior to their being returned to the licence holder for opening and counting.
• collection boxes must only be opened in the presence of the licence holder and another responsible person. Once opened, the contents must be counted immediately, and the total amount collected in each box recorded.
• following the collection, the licence holder must complete a prescribed “return” form to the Council within one month of the end of the collection period. The licence holder must certify the return and it must be countersigned by a qualified accountant.