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Charity house to house collections - guidance

You must apply to your council for a licence if you want to collect money or goods (that you plan to sell at a later date) from people’s homes for charity. We will need to be satisfied that an acceptable percentage of the total proceeds of the collection go to charity.

No payment or reward can be provided to any collector or vendor.

We will usually

  • only permit four collections per year by any individual or organisation
  • only issue permits to an individual or organisation whose aims appear to be charitable
  • not issue further permits to an individual or organisation whose collectors are paid more than we consider “reasonable expenses”.

You must be 16 years or older to collect.

Charities which have a Home Office exemption order do not need a permit but must notify us with specific dates of their collections in the Waverley area.

Email us at charity@waverley.gov.uk

  • Applications must be made at least 28 days before the collection date and will normally be for a period of no more than four weeks in a calendar year.
  • We limit the duration and number of permits issued to prevent too many collections taking place at once.
  • You may wish to check the availability of your preferred date before applying – email charity@waverley.gov.uk
  • You must submit a completed returns form within one month of your collection. Download the house collections return form.

Apply for house to house collection online

There is no fee for a house to house collection permit.

If you don’t get a licence before starting house-to-house collections you could face:

  • up to 6 months in prison
  • a fine of up to £1,000.

Anyone collecting who doesn’t give a police officer their name, address and signature when asked to could be fined up to £200.

Please see the Guidance from the Fundraising Regulator on fundraising and Covid19 . Please ensure you follow all national and local Covid restrictions in force at the time of your collection.

See our charitable collections guidelines and regulations

Email: charity@waverley.gov.uk