The Licensing Committee (Taxi and General) reviewed the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy, supporting an 8-week public consultation for the 2026 policy, and received a performance report on the work carried out by the Licensing Team. The committee delegated authority to the Director of Place and Prosperity to consider consultation responses and amend the draft policy as needed, in consultation with the committee chair.

Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy Review

The committee reviewed the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy Review 2025, which was last updated in August 2021 and is required to be reviewed at least every five years. Since the last review, changes have been made to the Institute of Licensing's guidance on determining the suitability of applicants and licensees, and the Department for Transport has issued best practice guidance for licensing authorities¹. The proposed Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy 2026 has been updated to reflect these changes.

The committee agreed to support an 8-week public consultation of the proposed policy. The consultation will allow members of the public, the taxi trade, and other interested organisations to comment on the policy. After the consultation, the Director for Place and Prosperity will consider the responses and may revise the policy before implementation. The new policy is scheduled to take effect from 2 February 2026.

Key discussion points included:

• Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles (WAVs): The committee discussed the requirement for operators with five or more vehicles to provide at least one WAV. Councillor Pat Cumbers, Chair of Taxi and General Licensing Committee, sought the committee's opinion on this requirement, noting that one driver/operator had repeatedly requested its removal. Currently, there are three WAVs in operation, up from one previously.
• Proposed Policy Changes: A table outlining the proposed changes to the current policy was provided in Appendix B - List of Proposed Changes to Taxi Policy.

The committee agreed to delegate authority to the Director of Place and Prosperity to consider the consultation responses and, in consultation with the Chair of the Committee, take any steps necessary to amend the draft policy to reflect those responses and/or implement the revised policy.

Performance Report (Taxi and General) 2024/25

The committee received the Performance Report Taxi and General for the financial year 2024/25, which provided an overview of the work carried out by the Licensing Team and the wider impacts and benefits of the licensing regime.

Key highlights from the report included:

• Licensing Team Structure: The core of the Licensing Team consists of one Business Compliance Officer, one Licensing Technician, one Enforcement Officer, one Public Protection Administration Assistant, and the Environmental Health and Licensing Manager.
• Licensing Activities: The Licensing Team handles a range of licences and registrations, including taxis, animal welfare, charity collections, houses in multiple occupation[^1] (HMO), caravan and camping sites, beauty treatments, and scrap metal dealers. [^1]: A House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) is a property rented out by at least 3 people who are not from 1 'household' (for example a family) but share facilities like the bathroom and kitchen.
• Total Licences Dealt With: The total number of licences dealt with between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025 was 267.
• Taxi Licences:
  • 66 Hackney Carriage vehicle licences were processed, with an average processing time of 2.73 days.
  • 31 Private Hire taxi vehicle licences were processed, with an average processing time of 1.84 days.
  • 43 Taxi Driver licences were processed, with an average processing time of 9.60 days.
  • 3 Private Hire Operators licences were processed, with applications typically dealt with on the day of receipt.
• Animal Welfare Licences: 60 Animal Welfare licences were processed, with an average processing time of 6.7 days. The report noted that over 85% of premises achieved a star rating of 4 or above, indicating good welfare standards.
• Enforcement: The team investigated 32 complaints and carried out 8 taxi enforcement investigations and 3 taxi compliance check operations.
• Public Registers: The licensing public registers are now live on the council's website.
• Licensing Policy Information: The report included a table outlining the current licensing policies and their review dates.

The report also highlighted future considerations, including proposed changes under the Health Care Act 2022 to introduce a licensing regime for non-surgical cosmetic procedures, and the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill, also known as Martyn's Law², which received Royal Assent on 3 April 2025. The committee noted the report for information.