Sports & Leisure

Meet your sports, amusement and recreation regulatory duties

If you serve alcohol or host regulated entertainment, operate a sports ground, run a swimming pool, coach children, operate fairground rides, offer adventure activities to young people or run gaming machines, your business carries specific licensing, certification, safeguarding or safety duties on top of the universal workplace foundation. This guide covers each regime and what you need to do.

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Related guides in Compliance & Legal

Some sports, amusement and recreation activities trigger their own licensing, certification, safeguarding or safety requirement on top of the workplace health and safety, fire safety, insurance, equality and data protection duties covered in the universal spine guide. This guide covers seven activity-specific regimes. If more than one applies to your premises, you must comply with all of them.

A. Premises licence for alcohol and regulated entertainment

If you sell or supply alcohol, or host regulated entertainment (live music, recorded music, performances of dance, indoor sporting events, boxing or wrestling) at your venue, you need a premises licence under the Licensing Act 2003 in England and Wales. You must also hold a personal licence if you authorise the sale of alcohol. The licensing authority is the local authority; you must also notify the police and the responsible authorities. The Licensing Act 2003 promotes four licensing objectives: prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, prevention of public nuisance, and protection of children from harm.

In Scotland, the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 applies — you need a premises licence from the licensing board and a personal licence for the premises manager. In Northern Ireland, alcohol licensing is governed by separate legislation — check with your local council.

B. Sports ground safety certificate

If you operate a sports ground that is designated under the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975 (capacity over 10,000, or over 5,000 for designated football grounds), you must hold a general safety certificate issued by the local authority. The certificate sets the maximum capacity, specifies the terms and conditions of use and may require structural alterations. The Sports Grounds Safety Authority (SGSA) oversees safety certification at grounds where the Premier League and English Football League play, under the Sports Grounds Safety Authority Act 2011. Other designated grounds are certified by the local authority without SGSA involvement. In Scotland, safety certification is administered by the local authority under the 1975 Act. Northern Ireland has separate arrangements — check with your local council.

Grounds that hold regulated stands (covered accommodation for 500 or more spectators) but are not designated under the 1975 Act may still need a safety certificate for those stands under the Fire Safety and Safety of Places of Sport Act 1987.

C. Swimming pool and spa safety

If you operate a public or semi-public swimming pool, paddling pool, splash pad, spa pool, hot tub or hydrotherapy pool, you must manage the specific risks of drowning, water quality, slip hazards and infection. HSE guidance HSG179 (Managing Health and Safety in Swimming Pools) sets out the standards for pool safety management, lifeguard provision, Normal Operating Procedures (NOPs), emergency action plans and pool-plant operation. The Pool Water Treatment Advisory Group (PWTAG) publishes complementary guidance on water quality, disinfection and microbiological standards. HSE enforces in Great Britain; HSENI enforces in Northern Ireland.

You must carry out a specific risk assessment for pool activities, provide trained and qualified lifeguards appropriate to the pool design and bather load, maintain water quality within PWTAG parameters, display pool rules and emergency procedures, and keep records of water-quality tests, incidents and near-misses.

D. Safeguarding and DBS checks for youth coaching

If your business provides coaching, instruction or supervised activities for children or vulnerable adults — including sports coaching, swimming lessons, youth camps, adventure activities and play schemes — you must ensure that staff and volunteers in regulated activity have an enhanced DBS check with the relevant barred-list check under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. It is a criminal offence to employ a barred person in regulated activity, and you have a duty to refer to the DBS where someone is dismissed for harming a child or vulnerable adult.

In Scotland, the equivalent is the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme administered by Disclosure Scotland. In Northern Ireland, AccessNI provides the equivalent disclosure and barring service. Many national governing bodies of sport also require coaches to hold a current DBS or PVG check as a condition of coaching qualifications and club affiliation.

E. Fairground and amusement ride safety

If you operate fairground rides — whether at a permanent amusement park or as a travelling fair — you have duties under HASWA section 3 to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of members of the public. HSE publishes specific guidance on fairground and amusement park safety. The industry-standard inspection scheme is operated by the Amusement Device Inspection Procedures Scheme (ADIPS) — rides must be inspected annually by an ADIPS-registered inspection body and carry a current Declaration of Operational Compliance (DOC). HSE enforces in Great Britain; HSENI enforces in Northern Ireland.

You must maintain ride maintenance logs, carry out daily pre-use checks, train ride operators, control queuing and boarding, and have emergency procedures for ride evacuation. Inflatable amusement devices (bouncy castles) must comply with BS EN 14960 and be anchored, supervised and inspected.

F. Adventure activities licence

If you provide adventure activities — caving, climbing, trekking or watersports — to young people under 18 in return for payment, you need a licence from the Adventure Activities Licensing Service (AALS), which is part of HSE. The licensing requirement is set by the Activity Centres (Young Persons' Safety) Act 1995 and the Adventure Activities Licensing Regulations 2004. The licence confirms that your safety management systems, risk assessments, instructor qualifications and equipment have been inspected and meet the required standard.

The licensing requirement applies in Great Britain. Voluntary organisations providing activities to their own members are exempt from the licensing requirement, but they must still comply with HASWA and manage risks to participants. In Northern Ireland, the Activity Centres (Young Persons' Safety) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 provides a similar framework — check with HSENI for current requirements.

G. Gaming machine and amusement arcade permits

If you operate gaming machines or run an amusement arcade — whether an adult gaming centre (AGC) or a family entertainment centre (FEC) — you need the appropriate authorisations under the Gambling Act 2005. An operating licence from the Gambling Commission authorises you to provide gambling facilities. A premises licence from the local authority authorises the use of specific premises for gambling. The category of gaming machine you may offer (A to D) depends on the type of premises licence you hold.

Pubs, clubs and other licensed premises may be entitled to a limited number of lower-category machines under automatic entitlements or by giving notice to the licensing authority, without needing a separate gambling premises licence. In Northern Ireland, gambling is regulated under the Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 — check with your local council for current requirements.

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    What to do next

    Complete the sports, amusement and recreation compliance checklist to confirm you have met every obligation that applies to your business.

Official sources

Authoritative guidance for sports, amusement and recreation regulatory duties.