Home boarding licence

What is home boarding?

Home boarding is the activity of providing the accommodation and care provided for dogs in a residential property. This does not need to include overnight accommodation to require a licence.

Do I need a licence to board animals at home?

If you want to board dogs you will require an animals activity licence. 

If you are unsure whether you require a licence please contact us using the email address below:

Email: licensing@eastriding.gov.uk

How do I apply for a home boarding licence?

To home-board dogs, you will require an animal activities licence. The accommodation and care provided for dogs does not need to include overnight accommodation to require a licence. 

How to apply

If you wish to apply for a home boarding licence you will need to complete the online application form below, 

Apply online for an animal activities licence 

Alternatively you can complete the hard copy below and submit it by email to the address supplied:

Application for an animal boarding licence (word 185kb)

Email: licensing@eastriding.gov.uk

Your application must be submitted along with all required supporting documents. Applications without supporting documents will not be accepted. 

If you are new to the whole or an area of animal activities licensing and require advice and guidance on applying for a Home Boarding licence, we offer a pre-application advice service. The fee for this service is £70 plus VAT. 

Please note: we cannot offer pre-application advice to any person who is subject to compliance/intervention or enforcement action by the Licensing Team. 

If you would like to book a pre-application advice meeting please email: licensing@eastriding.gov.uk.

Processing

Once you have submitted your complete application you will be contacted by a licensing officer, who will arrange to visit and inspect your home.

If you meet all the requirements, your licence will be granted and forwarded in due course within 10 weeks of a completed application been made:

In order to be granted a licence, you will need to be able to comply with the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) England Regulations 2018.

Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) England Regulations 2018 (pdf 5mb)

GOV.UK - Guidance for the home boarding of dogs (external website) 

If you are unable to meet the requirements for a licence, the officer will arrange to revisit you when you have done additional work on your home.

Tacit consent does not apply to this application, meaning that your application will not be automatically granted after a specified period of time. Each application must be considered on its own merits. 

Fees 

Animal Activities licence fees April 2022 (pdf 194kb)

How can I pay for a home boarding licence?

You can pay by credit/debit card by telephone.

Tel: (01482) 396297

How do I renew a home boarding licence?

You will need to renew your licence before your current licence expires. 

You should apply to renew your licence 10 weeks prior to its expiry. 

You can now apply online to renew your home boarding licence

Please note that the form will require payment at the end but if you fail to make payment the form will not go through to the licensing team. 

Apply online to renew a home boarding licence

How can I apply to change my home boarding licence?

Please contact licensing@eastriding.gov.uk for further advice.

What other permissions may I need?

If you are applying for an animal boarding licence you may also need to contact planning and business rates in relation to the use of your home for a business.

Who regulates animal boarding establishments?

The licensing team is responsible for the licensing and compliance of animal welfare licensing. 

If you have concerns about premises operating under a licence, have a complaint or would like to report a business that you are concerned are operating without a licence please email us:

Email: licensing@eastriding.gov.uk

Please make sure you provide as much information as you can to help us. You will be required to give your name and contact details so that we can ensure that the complaint is genuine. Your details will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed unless the investigation results in a prosecution at which stage your details would have to be disclosed.

What happens if I do not apply for an animal boarding licence?

If you board dogs, providing them with accommodation, you will require an animals activities licence. 

If you are found to be operating without a licence you may be prosecuted. 

Who is licensed to provide home boarding?

Public register for home boarding (pdf 554kb)

Public register for home boarding arrangers (pdf 492kb)

Updated 26 August 2022.

What do the star ratings really mean?

Under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 the local authority now issues a STAR rating to each premise based on a number of factors.

The star rating scheme is set by central government and applies nationally, this works a little different to other start rating schemes because it does not work on a sliding scale.

1 Star: These premises are existing businesses that are failing to meet the minimum standards.

2 Star: These premises do meet all of the mandatory minimum standards, however, they are deemed to be higher risk.

A premises could be deemed at high risk because they are a new operator that has been opened or been taken over in the past 12 months or because of non-compliance such as substantiated complaints within the last 3 years.

3 Star: These premises meet all of the mandatory standards set out in the new regulations and are providing a high level of animal welfare to the animals on the premises. These premises have been inspected to check that they meet satisfactory standards in areas of accommodation and enrichment.

4 Star: These premises meet all of the mandatory standards and a set of higher standards that are specific to the activity they are licensed for. However, they are deemed to be at higher risk. A premises could be deemed at high risk because they are a new operator that has been opened or taken over in the past 12 months or because of non-compliance such as substantiated complaints within the last 3 years.

5 Star: These premises meet all of the mandatory standards and a set of higher standards that are specific to the activity they are licensed for which are attached.

The higher standards are optional. In some cases existing businesses are unable to meet the higher standards because their business and buildings were already established, in other cases, the operator opts to not undertake the higher standards for other reasons such as they do not wish to provide additional services it requires. 

Higher standards (pdf 44kb)