Apply for a street trading licence

If you wish to sell items from a trailer, stall or any receptacle in a street, you need to obtain a street trading licence from the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

Before you apply we would advise you to contact the street trading team to discuss current availability.

'Street trading' is defined as the selling or exposing or the offering for sale of any article (including a living thing) or the supplying or offering to supply any service in a street for gain or reward.

'Street' is defined as any road, footway or any other area not being within permanently enclosed premises, within seven metres of any road or footway to which the public have access without payment.

Definitions for 'street trading' and 'streets' can be found in the London Local Authorities Act 1990 (as amended).

Food traders must also be registered with the Royal Borough's Environmental Health office.

Unlicensed street trading

We monitor and regulate street traders to ensure that trading is only taking place under licence from the Royal Borough. To report any unlicensed street trading, please contact the Street Trading team.

You don't need a street trading licence if you are:

• a market trader operating at a licensed market venue
• a news vendor selling only newspapers and periodicals. This is subject to certain conditions about the size and position of your newspaper stand. If these conditions are breached, you may be trading unlawfully. For more details about this, please contact Street Trading.

Trading on private land

You may not need a licence if you are trading on private land seven metres from a public highway. If this is the case, it is important that you have the permission of the landowner. If you are the landowner, you may need planning permission, so we advise you to contact our Planning Office.

Designated areas for street trading

We will only issue consent for street trading in the following designated areas:

• Colomb Street, SE10
  
  View Colomb Street in a larger map
• Tyler Street, SE10
  
  View Tyler Street in a larger map
• Earlswood Street, SE10
  
  View Earlswood Street in a larger map