Street works licence (England, Scotland and Wales)

What this covers

You need a licence to place apparatus on a street or road in England, Wales and Scotland

It applies in England, Wales and Scotland. 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 New Roads and Street Works Act 1991.

What the Act carries

These are the duties, penalties and exemptions our graph holds for New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 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

78

Penalties

66

Exemptions

21

Duties on businesses under the Act

• Transfer required land and pay compensation if road not completed s.1
• Demand a toll you are not authorised to charge s.14
• Refuse or fail to pay a road toll s.15
• Demand unauthorised toll or breach toll requirements s.37
• Fail to pay tolls s.38
• Carry out unauthorised street works s.51

… and 72 more business duties in the same Act.

What happens if you get it wrong

• Notify transport authority and follow its safety/traffic requirements for works at level crossings or tramways Unlimited fine
• Breach road restriction notice Unlimited fine
• Carry out road works against a timing direction Unlimited fine
• Carry out street works against a timing direction Unlimited fine
• Carry out street works during a restriction period without exemption Unlimited fine

… and 61 more penalties in the same Act.

Exemptions that may take you outside it

• Charges can apply for the same roadworks under both schemes
• Concession agreements do not change public maintenance status of roads — Roads subject to a concession agreement
• Emergency, police, and disabled persons' vehicles exempt from tolls — Vehicle is a police vehicle on duty, or is exempt from vehicle excise duty as a fire engine, ambulance, or …
• Emergency, police, and specialized disabled vehicles exempt from road tolls — Vehicle is a police vehicle, fire engine, ambulance, or used for the transport of disabled people as defined by the …
• Equipment renewal and pre-approved works exempt from 'protected road' consent — The work involves the renewal of existing apparatus or is performed under a permission granted before the road became protected

… and 16 more exemptions in the same Act.

Read our full dossier on New Roads and Street Works Act 1991

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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