Animals for exhibition

Performing animals licence

You’ll need this licence if the animals are:

exhibited for educational or entertainment purposes, such as in schools or at parties
used in any TV, film or theatre production

You do not need a licence if you train or exhibit animals for use by the military or police, or for sport.

Licence fees

The fees for each licence come in 2 parts:

part A – you’ll pay this when you submit your application form
part B – you’ll need to pay this once we approve your licence

Licences are for a period of 3 years. You must apply at least 8 weeks in advance of exhibiting animals.

Licence conditions

You must prove that you can meet the licence conditions. These include showing that the animals are:

kept in suitable accommodation
given adequate food, drink and bedding
visited and exercised regularly
protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease
protected in case of an emergency, for example a fire
looked after by people trained to care for the animals

You’ll also need to:

keep any records ready for inspection, for example details of the animals, like how you’ll be exhibiting them and when
display the licence clearly on the premises

Planning permission

Ensure that you have or do not need planning permission to keep or train animals for exhibition. If you must do building work to house your animals then you are likely to need planning permission.

If you have so many animals that it is regarded that the nature of your home has changed to a home for animals rather than for people, we may require you apply for planning permission for a change of use.

If we refuse your application

We must refuse a licence if we believe that you cannot meet the licence conditions. A licence cannot be granted to anyone who is disqualified.

You have the right of appeal to a first-tier tribunal within 28 days of our decision notice.

Apply for a new licence or to renew a licence

You’ll need to apply at least 8 weeks before:

starting to exhibit animals
the expiry of a current licence

You’ll need the following to complete the application:

a plan of the premises
standard operating procedures
emergency response plan
infection control procedures

Although not always required we recommend that you also include:

relevant qualifications
insurance policy
training records
written permission from your landlord if you are not the property owner
any other documents you think may be useful for example internal photos of the property
a current basic DBS

There is a fee for this service. You should pay part A when you submit your application.

Make an online payment

You’ll need a credit or debit card for this.

1. Select the button below and then follow the onscreen instructions

2. After receiving your payment receipt you’ll need to forward this email to licensing@arun.gov.uk.

Make a payment online

Accordion end

Apply for a new or renewal performing animal licence

We will let you know in plenty of time when your current Animal licence is due to expire to allow you to complete our online renewal application.

If you allow your licence to expire without submitting a valid renewal application you will be required to submit a brand new application.

Apply for a variation to an application

A variation is where you want to make an adjustment to the licence after we have granted it. You’ll need to do this if the adjustment relates to the licence or if it relates to the premises or animals referred to in the licence.

There is a fee for this service.

To apply for a variation, you will need to give us the following information:

existing licence number
reasons for the variation
copy of any plans if the variation relates to a change in layout or size of the premises

Once we have the details we will contact you to let you know how to make payment.

Apply for a variation of an animal licence

Apply to add an additional activity

If you already have a licence but want to expand your services you should apply to add an additional activity.

For example, if you already have a licence for animal exhibition and you now also want to breed animals you would apply to add an additional activity.

You’ll need to include: