Busking in London: update

Busking in London: update
Post Date February 16, 2023
Comments 1 Comment
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Category Camden, Kensington, law, licensing, London, PSPOs

  • Reams of red tape and a myriad of confusing rules could force talented buskers off London’s streets, the Mayor Boris Johnson has warned as he launched a new campaign to nurture the capital’s street musicians.

  • There is no doubt that live music on our streets adds to the city’s vibrancy, but I fear some parts of the capital could become no-go areas for buskers. Rather than shackling our musicians with unnecessary bureaucracy, we should treasure the spontaneity they bring to our high streets and town centres.

Since Boris Johnson launched his campaign to make London the most busker-friendly city in the world in 2014, a lot has happened.

As we feared at the time what has happened has been entirely the opposite. What has been supported and nurtured is a sanitised, regulated, corporate  version of street performance, whilst genuine grassroots busking has been systematically marginalised and  criminalised.

The sad fact now is that there is virtually nowhere viable and open to busk in central London.

Barking and Dagenham no restrictions.

Barnet

Bexley  Claim that busking is licensed. We are unaware if legislation has been passed and need to follow this up.

Brent

Bromley

Camden license now only applies to louder acts, circle shows and groups

Croydon

Ealing

Enfield

Greenwich has now introduced licensing in Greenwich and Woolwich town centres. Other areas open as normal.

Hackney

Hammersmith and Fulham- PSPOs banning amplification in Hammersmith and Shepherd’s Bush 

Haringey

Harrow seems to have a PSPO in place requiring permission from the BID to either busk or use amplification (not clear which) and only in Harrow town centre area.Clarifiaction requested but not received.

Havering open. Successful campaign against PSPO in Romford.

Hillingdon Licensed with only 4 locations available.

Hounslow “If a busker or a group of buskers act in such a way as to cause a nuisance to Passers by, then they will be asked to cease and leave the area.”

Islington

Kensington and Chelsea operate an extremely complex PSPO regime.

Kingston upon Thames Guidelines

Lambeth

Lewisham

Merton

Newham

Redbridge 3 ‘designated” pitches in Ilford town centre. Otherwise uncontrolled.

Richmond upon Thames

Southwark

Sutton

Tower Hamlets PSPO in Brick Lane prohibiting busking after 9pm. Possibly rescinded.

Waltham Forest

Wandsworth

Westminster

 

ASB and Policing Act 2014, PSPOs what do they mean for public space?

ASB and Policing Act 2014, PSPOs what do they mean for public space?
Post Date October 14, 2014
Comments 3 Comments
Author
Category Articles, Bath, Blog, Camden, Liverpool

Keep Streets Live – protecting cultural freedoms and access to public space for the arts

Sweeping new powers hidden in the Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 come into force on October 20th, and already local authorities are planning to use them against buskers. This act gives councils the power to introduce PSPOs (Public Space Protection Orders) which can be used to ‘ban’ activities in public spaces, even if they are not illegal. The Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods in Bath, David Dixon, has stated that PSPOs will be used against buskers in that cityafter the Rector of Bath Abbey Edward Mason brought an evening service to a halt because of the noise he claimed street musicians were making. I will be taking part in a public debate about civic freedoms and public space with Rev Mason and Councillor Dixon this Saturday at the Battle of Ideas event held at the Barbican in London. Tickets are still available. Keep Streets Live will be at the forefront of scrutinising these new powers and their impact upon cultural and civic freedoms in the months and years ahead.

Meanwhile it is a year since the Citizen’s Kazoo Orchestra and the Church of the Holy Kazoo were founded as a protest vehicle against Camden Council’s criminalisation of busking in that previously vibrant corner of London. Our ongoing legal challenge against that policy reaches the Court of Appeal on November 13th with a permission hearing. On Sunday 19th October we will be taking to the streets of Camden for an anniversary protest busk. Because busking is a sacred act for the Church of the Holy Kazoo, and our hymnbook is every piece of music ever written and performed, our protest busk falls under the exemption granted by Camden to ‘music that is part of a religious service or ceremony’. Join us on Camden High Street from 1pm onwards. This is a link to the facebook event: All are welcome! Camden, we are not giving up on you!

https://www.facebook.com/events/1474664902822738/

Keep Streets Live exists to promote good relationships between buskers, local authorities and all users of shared public spaces. Whilst we oppose the use of blanket powers against street culture that criminalise harmless activity we recognise that councils need guidance for the oversight of busking. We are proud to have worked alongside Liverpool City Council and the Business Improvement District to produce a Best Practise Guidance document for street culture. We are now part of a London Mayoral Taskforce for the oversight of busking where we have been sharing the contents of the Liverpool document with the Mayor’s team. We believe that the principles in this guidance provide a working template not just for Liverpool but for other towns and cities in the UK and beyond that want to encourage harmonious relationships between those who share our public spaces whilst preserving a vibrant street culture. In a free society, freedom of expression must be protected and this guidance is a clear and workable alternative to the criminalisation of street culture and the application of coercive legal powers that some local authorities turn towards all too readily.You can see that document here: http://keepstreetslive.com/uncategorized/2014/09/best-practice-busking-guide

Thank you for your continued interest and support. We hope to see you on a street filled with music some day soon!

Love,

Jonny Walker

Director Keep Streets Live Campaign

http://keepstreetslive.com
https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepstreetslivecamden/
http://facebook.com/jonnysongs

A Significant Anniversary

A Significant Anniversary
Post Date July 10, 2014
Comments 0 Comments
Author
Category Articles, Camden, Liverpool, York

 What a journey! The Keep Streets Live Campaign was born two years ago with a simple but vital mission to advocate for public spaces that are open to informal offerings of art and music and to seek to build positive relationships between local authorities and street performers whilst developing policies that support and sustain street culture. The campaign was a response to Liverpool Council’s plans to introduce one of the most restrictive busking policies of any major UK city in July 2012 which included threats of trespass prosecutions against unlicensed buskers on the public highway, bans on under 18s and huge restrictions on where and when people could perform. 2012-08-22 16.20.332012-08-22 15.14.12 http://www.liverpoolconfidential.co.uk/Culture/Ged-Gibbons-v-Johnny-Walker http://www.liverpoolconfidential.co.uk/News-and-Comment/Exclusive-Liverpool-busking-policy-thrown-out

Challenging their decision with creativity and passion Liverpool’s grassroots cultural community asked the council to work alongside them and not against them to design a policy based on preserving spontaneity and openness to public space for art and music and using dialogue and communication to resolve disputes. To their immense credit, the council listened and just two years later they have partnered with Keep Streets Live to introduce a scheme based on partnership between buskers, the council and local businesses which will make it a pioneer amongst British cities for the way it encourages and nurtures buskers. An open busker’s forum will be held in Liverpool to which everybody is welcome to discuss ongoing issues. We will also meet regularly with the council to maintain positive relationships.

 

In March 2013 the campaign successfully challenged York City Council’s restrictive compulsory license scheme which required performers to apply in advance, audition and pay £40 per day if they wished to make CDs available. York Council abandoned their license scheme in response to our challenge but there is much work still to be done there to improve relationships between the council and the busking community. An open busker meeting is going to be held at El Piano, Grape Lane, YO1 7HU, in York at 6pm on Monday 14th July to discuss these issues. All who care about preserving street culture are welcome to this open meeting. Feel free to join the facebook event page and to invite friends along: https://www.facebook.com/events/264543563738841/

Lastly, our challenge to Camden Council’s Cromwellian anti-culture law continues. Lib Dem Peer Lord Clement-Jones, a well-known supporter of live music who brought in the Live Music Act in 2012 as a private member’s bill, has proposed the effective repeal of the law underpinning Camden’s draconian busking legislation in the House of Lords. Meanwhile the Court of Appeal will consider our ongoing legal challenge on the 6th of October. We will not let this unjust and repressive law remain unchallenged. Read more here: http://keepstreetslive.com/blog/2014/07/busking-laws-and-the-lords The Keep Streets Live Campaign is part of a London mayoral taskforce with a mandate to, in the words of Boris Johnson, make the capital into the ‘world’s most busker friendly city’. We will keep you posted on all developments and have much work to do in the capital city where attitudes towards buskers are best described as medieval! Meanwhile if you have any questions or comments or want to get involved with the campaign in any way, please feel free to reply to this email. There are regional Keep Streets Live facebook groups which you are welcome to join to keep in touch with our work.

With thanks,

Jonny Walker

Director of Keep Streets Live Campaign

jonnywalker@me.com

http://keepstreetslive.com

Liverpool https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepstreetslive/

Camden https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepstreetslivecamden/

Yorkshire and Humber https://www.facebook.com/groups/KeepstreetsliveYorkshireandHumber/

London https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepstreetsliveinlondon/