Street Trading

Street Trading Policy

Street trading refers to the selling or exposing for sale any goods/articles on the street. The term ‘street’ includes any road, footway or other area to which the public have access without payment.

All streets within the Ashford Borough are designated as consent streets, and trading without the appropriate consent is a criminal offence.

Details of our approach to street trading is contained within our Street Trading Policy [pdf] 642KB

We are also in the process of reviewing our current Street Trading Policy, and can share a copy of a DRAFT Street Trading Policy 2026 [pdf] 362KB to which we invite comments from the public, other authorities, and street traders. The updated document has been drafted to update the existing policy to match the current street trading climate and to increase clarity over our approach to this topic.

Comments may be submitted by email to licensing@ashford.gov.uk by 30 November 2025, after which they will be reviewed and considered prior to the publishing of a final updated policy document.

Types of Street Trading Consent

Street trading consents are generally divided into two main categories:

To find out more details about those consents types and how to apply, please see the details within the above links.

Unlicensed/Illegal Trading

If you wish to report unauthorised street trading please Log into your Account (or create an account if you don't already have one), and complete the Report a Licensing Issue form, which can be found by going to Service Requests>General Licensing