Animal activities licence

Upon receipt of your fully completed application and the application fee, an acknowledgement will be emailed to you. Please note that a fully completed application includes a completed application form, attachment of the relevant documentation and any applicable completed appendix. 

We will then be in touch to give feedback on the documents submitted and arrange an inspection of the premises (between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday).

Documentation feedback

Officers will check documentation submitted against the Defra requirements. You will normally receive feedback via a checklist before your inspection. Applicants will then have a short time window to update documentation, if they wish, in-line with the findings of the checklist. This time window is between the receipt of the checklist and the completion of the ‘full inspection report’.  Absence of some of the required documentation, in most cases results in a lower risk rating, not the refusal of a licence.

Scheduled inspection

We'll make an appointment for a site visit to check a business can meet the required licence conditions and welfare standards.

During the inspection, the inspector may choose to take samples from any animal present (and owned by the applicant) for laboratory testing. An applicant/operator must comply with any reasonable request made by an inspector to facilitate the identification, examination, and sampling of an animal.

Compliance risk is assessed following the inspection in accordance with the animal activity star rating scheme (not applicable to the keeping or training animals for exhibition licence). In some circumstances further inspections or vet inspections will be made.  

Full inspection report

We will issue a ‘full inspection report’ to the applicant following consideration of the inspection reports received and the risk rating. This report details what improvements can be made and how the star rating has been determined.  

Note: The higher the star rating the longer the licence (three years maximum). The highest rating is achieved by meeting all the 'required' higher standards and 50% of the 'optional' higher standards (see the relevant Defra guidance documents).

Applicant suitability

An applicant’s suitability is assessed during the whole application process.

Issuing the licence

The full inspection report requests payment of the final 'issue' fee.  The issue fee covers any supplementary fees added to your licence and the cost of any other inspections or interactions that may occur during the term of the licence. Other interactions may include responding to complaints and issuing public health and animal welfare information to licence holders.  

Upon receipt of the issue fee your licence will be issued.

A licence must be clearly and prominently displayed on the licenced premises and your licence number must be displayed on any web page used for your animal activity. 

At renewal a new licence number is issued.

Your star rating

The animal activities star rating scheme has a number of safeguards built in to ensure fairness to businesses:

Inspections during the term of the licence

We aim to carry out at least one unannounced inspection during the term ofan animal activity licence. Additional inspections may be carried out following complaints, or other information suggesting licence conditions are not being met or if the welfare of the animals may be at risk.

Variations

At any time we may vary the licence following either:

• application in writing from the licence holder (by email to [email protected] or post to Licensing, Cheltenham Borough Council, Municipal Offices, Promenade, Cheltenham GL50 9SA) or, 
• our own decision (where consent, in writing, of the licence holder has been obtained)

Renewals

We will email you three months before your licence expires. You must apply for a renewal of your licence 10 weeks before the expiry date to continue your activity without a break. An inspection of the premises is carried out before renewing the licence. 

Emails

The animal licencing process is operated via email. If you would like paper copies an additional fee applies.

Please ensure emails from [email protected] do not go into your spam folder.

Please ensure you keep us up-to-date with your email address. To change the email from the one provided on your application form, please email [email protected] with your licence number. 

The request will need to come from the email used on the application form and state when you wish the new email to be used from. If you have already changed your email address a signed letter will be required providing the relevant information.