Sex shop and cinema licence (England and Wales)

What this covers

Contact your council for a sex establishment licence if you want to run a sex shop or adult cinema

It applies in England and Wales. Other UK nations run their own regimes — check the equivalent for the nation you trade in.

Why you need it

This licence is not an administrative preference — it exists because Parliament created it. The power to require it comes from LGMPA 1982.

What the Act carries

These are the duties, penalties and exemptions our graph holds for LGMPA 1982 as a whole — the Act behind this licence, not the licence conditions themselves. They show what sort of instrument you are dealing with.

Duties on businesses

21

Penalties

13

Exemptions

4

Duties on businesses under the Act

• Register to practise acupuncture and use only registered premises s.14
• Register yourself and your premises before practicing acupuncture s.14
• Register your tattoo, piercing, skin-colouring or electrolysis business with the council s.15
• Refuse entry to a local authority officer s.17
• Refuse entry to an authorised inspector (acupuncture/piercing) s.17
• Conduct unauthorized or dangerous road-side sales s.23

… and 15 more business duties in the same Act.

What happens if you get it wrong

• Allow under-18s to enter or work at a sex establishment Unlimited fine
• Make a false statement on a licence application Unlimited fine
• Refuse entry to sex establishment inspector Unlimited fine
• Fail to notify the council of a temporary market Fine up to £2,500
• Hold a temporary market without required notice Fine up to £2,500

… and 8 more penalties in the same Act.

Exemptions that may take you outside it

• Local authorities and councils exempt from Life Assurance Act 1774 — Insurance contracts for local authority members or voluntary assistants for accidents or disease while on authority business
• Occasional sexual entertainment exempt from sex establishment licensing — Entertainment provided on no more than 11 occasions in 12 months, each lasting 24 hours or less, with at least …
• Public utility works exempt from street construction licensing — Works are 'code-regulated works' as defined in the Public Utilities Street Works Act 1950
• Transport and aviation sectors exempt from local authority lost property rules — Property found on an aerodrome/aircraft, in a public service vehicle, or on Transport for London premises

Read our full dossier on LGMPA 1982

Who issues it

Your local council issues this, acting as the licensing authority for the area you trade in. Councils apply the same statute but set their own fees, conditions and timescales, so two neighbouring authorities can reach you differently.

Where to apply

Our guidance on this

Everything below is written out in full elsewhere on Guvnor — this page points at it rather than repeating it.

Licences that often go with this one

Businesses in the same activities usually need one or more of these too.

Duty, penalty and exemption labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the enabling instrument, not the instrument itself. Fees, forms and conditions are set by the issuing authority — always check the linked source.

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