Street events
Guide to holding street events in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Whether you are planning a small-scale event; such as a store opening, pop-up installation or a red carpet premiere, or a larger street party or celebration, this page will provide you with important information on what to include in your application.
A Temporary Highway Consent (THC) is required whenever any temporary infrastructure is placed on the public highway (including the footway). Temporary structures include, but are not limited to, flag poles, barriers, signage, market stalls and gazebos.
Small-scale street activity
In order to apply for relevant permissions, you must submit your online event application form and attach the following documents:
- event description (who, what, where, when, how)
- detailed site map (including dimensions) of the structure/s in location (where temporary structures are placed on the public highway/footway, they must not obstruct pedestrians or distract road users and your site map must demonstrate that at least 1.8m will be left for pedestrian thoroughfare)
- public liability insurance (minimum £5,000,000)
- risk assessment / method statement (all event organisers have a responsibility to thoroughly assess risks to help reduce or remove potential dangers to staff and attendees and the general public
- completed Temporary Highway Consent application form (below)
Street parties, Christmas markets and street celebrations
The event organiser will be the primary point of contact during the application process, and at the event on the day, unless otherwise stated during the application process.
Please include the following details in your initial email enquiry or online application:
Event details:
- name and contact details of event organiser
- event name
- location (street name)
- date and event timings
- number of people expected to attend
- whether the event is free of charge or ticketed
Event description:
- purpose of the event and a brief description
- event schedule of activity (whole event, including set-up and breakdown details)
- previous similar events held in the borough - provide details
- whether a road closure or parking suspensions is required (see information below)
any other information you feel is relevant to your application
Event activity:
- details of temporary structures - staging, stalls, bouncy castles, gazebos etc
- details of any live music or entertainment
- whether you plan to sell alcohol
- stewarding and security arrangements
- catering details and details of any trading of any kind
- promotional activity (such as promotional banners, leaflet distribution (during or before the event))
- waste management information (the council can provide a waste clearance service if booked well in advance of the event – please ask a Special Event officer for more information)
- toilet provision (please see below for guide)
Temporary toilet provision
When more than 50 participants are expected to attend an event the organisers may be required to provide temporary toilets. Temporary toilets should be removed promptly following the event.
The number of toilets required for the event are dependent on the duration of the event and number of expected participants. Please see the table below for guidance.
| Event type | Female toilets | Male toilets |
|---|---|---|
| Events lasting less than 6 hours | 1 per 100 | 1 per 500 plus 1 urinal per 150 |
| Events lasting six hours or more, with some alcohol or food served | 1 per 850 | 1 per 425 plus 1 urinal per 125 |
| Events lasting six hours or more with alcohol or food served in quantity | 1 per 75 | 1 per 400 plus 1 urinal per 100 |
Event organisers should also consider suitable and sufficient sanitary facilities for disabled visitors at a ratio of 1 to 500 visitors.
Required supporting documents
The following documents are required to support your application to hold a small event in a public street or space in the borough, and should be submitted well in advance of your event to give relevant departments time to review them and offer further guidance.
Relevant departments (who may contact you directly) include, but are not limited to, Environmental Health, Noise and Nuisance, and Licensing, as well as the Events team.
- Event management plan
- Site plan (including all temporary structures, activity, toilets, access and egress etc)
- Crowd management plan (if applicable)
- Risk assessment / method statement
- Residents engagement plan (how you plan to notify and engage with residents regarding your event)
- Public liability insurance (minimum indemnity £5,000,000)
Please note, separate insurance and risk assessments will be required for large infrastructure such as staging, marquees and bouncy castles, if approved as part of the event in advance. A trained professional must be on site throughout the event duration to supervise this type of activity.
Licence Requirements
The following activities are licensable:
- Retail sale of alcohol
- Provision of regulated entertainment (including amplified music)
- Late night refreshment
A Temporary Event Notice (TEN) may be required if any of the above is due to take place at your event. TENs can be used to authorise relatively small-scale ad-hoc events held in a park or premises involving less than 499 people at one time.
A TEN requires 10 working days to process and the application costs £21.
More information on TENs and how to apply can be found on the licensing pages.
A granted TEN is not permission for your event to go ahead; you will still need to complete the event approval process outlined on this page.
A Premises Licence is required for one or more licensable activities involving more than 499 people at one time (Licensing Act 2003). For more information, please contact the Licensing Team on: [email protected], or call: 020 7341 5152.
The recommended lead-in time for a premises license application is three months.
More information on Premises Licenses and how to apply can be found on the licensing pages.
Road Closures (Temporary Traffic Order) and Parking Suspensions
Road Closures (Temporary Traffic Order)
A road closure or Temporary Traffic Order may be required at your event in the interests of public safety. Further information regarding TTOs and how to apply is available on the Temporary Traffic Orders webpage.
Typically, 6 weeks is required to process a road closure for an event taking place on a street with little through traffic and no bus services. In some cases, 12 weeks can be needed to process the request (for a larger road which would cause an obstruction to London Buses or require a diversion to be put in place, impacting other roads nearby).
Please contact the Special Events department on: [email protected] before submitting an application if you think a TTO may be required for your event.
Parking suspensions
We require 7 working days notice to process pay and display parking suspensions and 15 working days for resident bays (except during July and August when we require 10 or more days for all). Please submit your parking requests with your online application form and include:
- the time and date the suspension is required
- the number of bays
- the type of bay (pay and display/resident)
- the location (road name, machine number/house number)
- a parking map/sketch of the required suspensions
In some circumstances displacement parking will also need to be provided. The Special Events office will advise where necessary.
Residential street parties
If you would like to apply to hold a street party for your neighbours, friends and family, visit our street parties webpage for more information. You will need to submit an online event application form.
If the street party is for residents only, is not promoted widely, and nothing will be sold, we will try and make the application process as straightforward as possible. We may be in touch with further questions about safety and licence requirements (see Licence Requirements above).
If there is commercial activity at your street party there will be an administration charge (see the fees and charges document on the Holding an Event page).
A road closure (TTO) or parking suspension may be required for your event. Please see Road Closures and Parking Suspensions (above) for more information.