Ministers promise clearer role for councils in child performance rules shake-up

Clarification of the role of local authorities and a streamlined licensing process are part of what the Government has described as the biggest overhaul to the child performance regulations in 40 years.

Under the proposals, which are subject to consultation, it would be made clear that it is the role of local authorities solely to make decisions about safeguarding arrangements.

According to the Department for Education, this means councils will not be able to “interfere in producers’ editorial or artistic decisions or override parents’ or guardians’ judgement about what is right for their child”.

The DfE also said the changes would see clearer guidance on what programmes and shows licences needed to be granted for.

In the case of television and radio, the proposals mean that licences would be required when children are placed in “artificial situations”, which “have been contrived for artistic, editorial or dramatic effect”.

They will also be needed for programmes which may be billed or presented as 'observational' or 'factual', but where the experience of the child is still contrived for dramatic effect.

However, ‘unmanipulated’ interviews with children or films showing them in the ordinary course of their lives would not need licensing.

A list of situations where a local authority licence will be required for a child to take part in a professional performance is set out at the bottom of this article.

The Department said the final decision would rest with the local authority.

“The exact judgement varies from programme to programme – it will be down to local authorities to work with producers on where to draw the line,” it suggested.



The reforms also include:

  • A presumption that licences will be issued “if it is clear that the safety and welfare of children (before, during and after performances) is not at risk";
  • The onus on parents “to take responsibility for their own children’s activities” and producers “to show they have put in place robust safeguarding arrangements and thorough risk assessments before they apply for a licence”;
  • The ability for producers of youth and amateur productions to apply for group licences every two years, to cover all under-16s performers;
  • The lifting of age specific limitations on children doing certain types of activities.

The DfE said the licensing process for children to take part in professional productions would also be streamlined.

Under the proposals, there would be standardised applications and risk assessment process throughout England and Wales. “Where risks are low, local authorities should aim to issue licences within 10 working days,” the Department said.

The plans also include extending the simplified approval process for children who take part in ‘one-off events to include children 13 and over who are paid, removing the requirement for chaperones in the amateur sector to be approved by the local authority, and introducing greater flexibility for the requirement to maintain 15 hours of tuition a week.

Local authorities will in addition be handed the responsibility for licensing children from their area to perform abroad. Under the current regime, they have to apply to the chief police officer and magistrates.

The DfE said that councils were forced by the current system to “prioritise chasing applicants to fill out the right paperwork, instead of inspecting and enforcing licences”. There was also confusion about which specific activities required a licence, the Department claimed.

Children’s Minister Tim Loughton said: “The current rules are outdated, complex, confusing and not fit for purpose. They come from an age when there were just three television channels and bear no relation to the broadcasting or performing industries in the 21st century.

“The rules are incredibly complex, bureaucratic and patchily applied – meaning that many amateur dramatic groups simply do not involve children in their plans, which is ridiculous.”

The Minister also suggested that the streamlining of the licensing framework would free local authorities to focus on helping producers to develop effective safeguarding policies, and to inspect and enforce the requirements.

The consultation is available on the DfE’s website here

Situations where a licence will be required

  • performing to a paying audience;
  • performing in premises licensed to sell alcohol;
  • public broadcast material – when children are placed in artificial situations, which have been contrived for artistic, editorial or dramatic effect. Programmes which may be billed or presented as 'observational' or 'factual' but where the experience of the child is contrived for dramatic effect will require licensing;
  • paid modelling, including advertising and stills photography; and
  • aged under-13 and paid to compete and perform in recognised sports – over and above reasonable expenses. Individual sports governing bodies will be in charge of overseeing over-13s in line with the national Standards for Safeguarding and Protecting Children in Sport, jointly funded by Sport England and the NSPCC.

Situations which will be exempt:

  • where the performance is arranged by a school or Academy, including those outside the school premises accompanied by a teacher;
  • where participation in the activity poses no greater risks, than the risks they face in ordinary course of their life and the child is not being paid;
  • where it involves the creation of content generated by a child or their parent, where there is no plan to upload or share it for profit;
  • where a child is aged 13 or over, is not paid, and the specific performance has been granted a local authority Body of Persons approval;
  • where a producer holds a current amateur performance registration and the child is not being paid to participate; and
  • unplanned performances, for example unpaid auditions, where it would not be practicable for a licence to be obtained in advance. “Auditions” which are recorded and broadcast would require to be licensed.

Source: Department for Education