Hiring horses

If you are involved in hiring out horses in the course of a business for either or both of the following purposes:

• Riding
• Instruction in riding

Then you will require a licence under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.

Guidance for Animal Activity Licensing

New statutory guidance for animal activity licensing from February 1, 2022 can be found on the Government website.

Application form and fees

Animal Activity Licence Application Form – there is one generic Animal Activity Licence Form that covers all activities. Sections 1 to 4 must be completed for all application, and then complete the relevant sections for the activities that you are applying for.

• Animal Activity Licence Application Form 2024 (Word Document, 0.1 Mb)

Application and Licence Fee – The fees for an Animal Activity Licence are split into an application fee which must be received with the application and a licence fee which is required to be paid once the licence is approved and covers the length of the licence.

All fees are non-refundable, therefore you must ensure that you have read through the licence conditions and guidance before you apply and if you have any concerns then speak to a Animal Activity Licensing Officer.

Animal Activity Licence Fees Summary

The hiring out horses licence requires a veterinary inspection on granting and renewal of a licence and also every 12 months. The operator will be invoiced separately for this charge following the visit.

Additional Information

Licenses will be issued for one, two or three years depending on their risk and star rating. New businesses can only achieve a one or two year licence.

Further information on the new licensing process is available on our Animal Activity Licensing FAQs page.

For new riding establishments, planning permission may be required. Further information can be obtained from Planning Services.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have produced a Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and their Hybrids which might be of interest.

Star ratings

Businesses are encouraged to display their star ratings, which came into effect on October 1, 2018.

Businesses have 21 days to appeal their star rating.

Please see the details of the star ratings in the table below:

Star rating	Description
1 Star / 1 Year Licence	Business that has minor failings against the minimum standards.
2 Star / 1 Year Licence	Business is compliant with both the minimum and they are either a new business (*) or considered higher risk due to previous history etc.
3 Star / 2 Year Licence	Business is compliant with the minimum standards. (**) would be considered compliant with the optional higher standards, but they cannot achieve increasing the unit size by 1.5 times which is required by the higher standards
4 Star / 2 Year Licence	Business is compliant with both the minimum and optional higher standards and they are either a new business (*) or considered higher risk due to previous history etc.
5 Star / 3 Year Licence	Business is compliant with both the minimum and optional higher standards.

List of Animal Activity Licenses

The list of animal activities licensed in Charnwood can be viewed in the document below:

• List of Animal Activity Licences - February 2024 (Excel Spreadsheet, 0.1 Mb)