Arun

Society Lotteries

With the exception of the National Lottery, lotteries are now regulated by the Gambling Act 2005. There are a number of activities which can be included in the general definition of a lottery.  These include:

• Raffles.
• !00, 200 clubs and the like.
• Lucky programme draws.
• Open-the-box competitions and similar competitions.
• Tombolas

Not all types of lottery require licensing and the licensing arrangements may vary according to a number of factors, including the total proceeds from the sale of tickets. 

 As a simple explanation, lotteries can be categorised as follows:

• The National Lottery: Regulated by the Lottery Commission.
• Large Lotteries: Licensed by the Gambling Commission.
• Small Society Lotteries: Registered by local authorities.
•  Other lotteries:  No permission required but are subject to legislation.

Under the heading of ’other lotteries’ there are a number of lottery activities which do not require any type of licensing:  The following is a brief summary:

• Incidental lotteries: These are lotteries held incidental to another event, typically a fete or bazaar. Tickets may only be sold at the event and the result of the draw has to be announced during the event.
• Society lotteries: Tickets may only be sold to members of the society or on society premises.
• Workplace lotteries: The lottery can only be promoted on a single set of premises and tickets sold to persons working on the premisese.
• Residents lotteries: The lottery can only be promoted on a single set of residential premises (for instance a halls of residence, retirement home, or similar) and the tickets sold to persons who live on the premises.
• Customer lotteries: Tickets may only be sold to customers on the premises.

There are specific rules applicable to each of the above lotteries. Arun District Council produces a help sheet giving details of these and a copy can be obtained by contacting the Licensing Team at the Arun Civic Centre. I is hoped to put this information on our main Gambling Pages in due course. None of these lotteries may be promoted for private gain.

If you are proposing to use any of the above mentioned lotteries as a means of fundraising, it should be noted that works lotteries, residents lotteries and customer lotteries are not permitted to make a profit and are therefore unsuitable for this purpose.

The Council is responsible for registering small society lotteries in the Arun District.  Such lotteries cannot be promoted for private gain.  There are restrictions on such lotteries, which are as follows:

• The proceeds may not exceed £20,000. (The proceeds is the amount of raised from the sale of the tickets).
• The agregate of the proceeds may not exceed £250,000 during any year.
• It must not be possible to win a prize from the purchase of a ticket which is worth more than £25,000 in money or money’s worth.  

If you lottery falls outside of the above criteria, it is almost certainly a ’large lottery’ and will require a licence from the Gambling Commission.

The principal advantage of obtaining registration for your small society lottery is that it removes the restrictions on the persons you can sell tickets to. (NB: Tickets may only be sold by or purchased by persons over the age of 16).

Promoters of small society lotteries are required to supply information about the lottery to Arun District Council within three months of the draw being held. The forms to make a return are supplied to lottery promoters registered with Arun District Council

Application forms to apply for a small society will soon be made available to download online. Meanwhile, contact the Licensing Team at Arun District Council if you require a form.

Street Collections

If you want to collect money or sell articles, in any public place within the District of Arun, for the benefit of charitable or other purposes, then you must hold a street collection permit issued to you by Arun District Council. It is an offence for any person to collect money or sell articles without the benefit of a permit and/or to breach the adopted regulations.

The Street Collection Regulations 1984 were made by Arun District Council, under the Police, Factories, etc. (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1961.
The Regulations ( PDF : 20KB ) control where and how money is collected, or articles sold, in any street or public place within the district, for the benefit of charitable or other purposes.

A permit would not be required for a collection held inside a pub or club (if going from one pub to another you will need a House to House Collection Licence), or in a supermarket, cinema, theatre, private dwelling house or works or business premises.

A permit is also not required for the selling of articles in any street or public place when articles are sold in the ordinary course of trade and for the purposes of earning a livelihood. If selling in the course of trade you must not make any representation whatsoever that any part of the proceeds of sale will be devoted to any charitable purpose (See Street Trading).

Applications must be submitted to us at least one month in advance of the proposed collection, but most are agreed at the beginning of the year. Permits are free of charge. The Council is keen to help charities and similar organisations but only allows one collection at a time in any area. When an application is received, sufficient information is required to ensure the organisation is legitimate. Charities are required to supply a Charity Registration Number and, if necessary, details are checked with the Charity Commissioners. One month after the collection, a statement giving details of the proceeds of the collection, signed by a qualified accountant or an independent responsible person should be submitted. These Statements of Return are kept on a Public Register.

House to House Collections

A House to House Collection is an appeal to the public by means of visits from house to house, which includes domestic properties or a place of business. Most collections are carried out by the larger charitable organisations, who leave envelopes with householders and returning on a set date to pick up the donation. Some charities request clothing or bric-a-brac to be left out in plastic sacks. All house to house collections must be licensed, in accordance with the House to House Collections Act 1939 and the House to House Collections Regulations 1947 ( PDF: 15KB ). Attach House to House Regulations.doc Collections that are carried out by going from pub to pub with collecting tins require a licence and the permission of the landlord.

Many national charities have Home Office Orders of Exemption made under Section 3, which allows them to carry out their collections throughout the country without the need to be issued with a local authority licence. Otherwise a licence must be issued by the local authority. The Council cannot prevent different organisations collecting at the same time.

Applications for collections must be submitted at least one month in advance of the proposed collection day or period. Licences are free of charge. When an application is received, sufficient information is required to ensure the organisation is legitimate. One month after the collection, a statement giving details of the proceeds of the collection, signed by a qualified accountant or an independent responsible person should be submitted. These Statements of Return are kept on a Public Register.

Any person found to be promoting collection without a licence can be fined up to a maximum of £1000 or be liable for up to six months imprisonment. Any person found to be collecting without a licence can be fined up to a maximum of £200. The Regulations require that collectors possess certificates of Authority from the promoter and a prescribed badge.