Child employment licences

For children under 13 all paid work is prohibited except performance work such as theatre, music performance, television or modelling. This is dealt with separately - see the section on entertainment licences below.

For children aged between 13 and 16, the following rules apply. More information is available at the national network for children in employment and entertainment (NNCEE).

The employment of young people is subject to a number of Acts & Regulations, in particular:

• Children and Young Persons Act 1933 to 1968
• Employment of Children Act 1973
• Education Act 1944 to 1996
• Children Act 1989
• Children (Protection at Work) Regulations 1988
• North Yorkshire County Council Employment of Children Byelaws 1998

Depending on a young person’s age, the type of work and the hours of work which they may undertake are limited. They will need to apply for a work permit and the type of work will need to be approved.

Our safeguarding unit will consider issuing a work permit on receipt of the application form which has been signed by both the employer and the parent.

Permits are available free of charge.

We must be satisfied that the young person’s health, welfare and ability to take full advantage of their education would not be jeopardised by undertaking such work. The employer is required to complete a risk assessment and share this information with the parent/guardian. On receipt of a request for a work permit, an application form for this purpose is sent either directly to the employer or via the young person to the employer.

We suggest that section 2 is completed first by the employer, as this will confirm the hours and days of work.

The parent then should fill in section 1 and sign it, in agreement with the information on the form.

We retain the right to insist in certain circumstances that a child has a medical examination to prove he/she is fit for work.

A work permit will be issued to the young person if the application is approved, and is valid for 12 months. The permit will contain the following information:

• the name, date of birth of the young person
• the hours of employment including breaks
• the nature of the employment
• the place of employment
• the place of education

The permit must be produced for inspection when required by an authorised inspection officer. The headteacher of the child’s school will be advised when a work permit has been issued.

Here are some common examples:

Further examples, as well as best practice, can be found at the Government website.

Licences are free if you apply at least ten full working days before the performance.

However, licences can be fast-tracked at a cost of £40 if the application form is received at least three full working days before the performance. The application form must be received fully complete, with required documents included and payment must be made immediately by credit card over the telephone.

To ensure our children are safeguarded and all checks are carried out appropriately, we are unable to process licences which reach us with less than three full working days notice.

The following regulations apply according to the child's age. More information is available at the national network for children in employment and entertainment website.

Note: Regulation 5 allows the licensing authority to further restrict these permitted hours, breaks etc. and place additional conditions on the licence if this would be in the best interests of the individual child.

Further examples, as well as best practice, can be found at the Government website.

Body of persons approval

The Children and Young Persons Act 1963 S37(3)(b) gives a local authority the power to issue an exemption licence to a 'body of persons' to enable an organisation to engage children in public performance without the need for separate performance licences to be issued. This is subject to certain criteria being met, and if granted, is known as a body of persons approval.

It is typically used by organisations such as local dramatics groups, or choirs or orchestras. The body of persons approval lasts for a year, and if you hold several performances in that time you do not need to reapply, although you do need to notify us of all performances and children involved.

You can read detailed guidelines on the body of persons approval here. 

Apply for a Disclosure and Barring Service check 

You can find information about applying for an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check on our website.

Make sure you apply as early as possible as it can take at least four months at key times of the year, for example, summer and Christmas. 

Verify your documents

You will need to provide verified identity documents to support your Disclosure and Barring Service application. 

We can verify your documents once you have submitted your online application. Contact the verification centre closest to you for an appointment.

Verification appointment

You need to explain at your appointment that you are applying to become a child chaperone responsible for looking after children who perform in the theatre and / or on TV. 

Pre-existing Disclosure and Barring Service clearances

If you already have an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service clearance, it will only be accepted if it cleared and:

• it was issued in the last five years and there has been less than three months break in service from the post it relates to
• it shows North Yorkshire County Council or North Yorkshire Council as the registered body
• it shows that a check to the Children's Barred list has been carried out with a result of 'None recorded' 

Please note that we do not accept results from the DBS update service.

Further information

If you need help with any of these steps, please contact us.

You need to complete this course as part of your application. You will still need to complete the course even if you have taken a different safeguarding course before. 

Access the course

You will need to contact us to ask for access to the course. Let us know that you are going to be a chaperone and our Training and Learning Service will issue you with a course link. There will not be a fee. 

Quiz score certificate

You will have to answer some questions at the end of the course. After you answer all the questions, the last screen will give you your quiz score. This is your certificate. 

You need to take a screenshot of this page to submit with your application.

Please note that if your current safeguarding course certificate is over three years old, you will need to take the course again. 

Further information

If you need help with any of these steps, please contact us.