Under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, local authorities are required to provide certain information annually to the Secretary of State for Defra.  

This includes the number of licences in force for each licensable activity in the local authority and the average level of fees it has charged for licences it has granted or renewed in each reporting period. The data the local authority submits must cover the period 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022. 

This year Defra have moved to a new online form which allows local authorities to submit their information directly to Defra.  

The new form can be accessed through the Gov.uk website Animal activity licensing process: statutory guidance for local authorities - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) under ‘report animal activity licences and fees to the Secretary of State.’  

Defra said "We will only accept data returns on the online form and will not accept them over email.  All local authorities must have submitted a completed form by 31 May 2022."

Local authorities can contact AnimalActivitiesLicensing@defra.gov.uk if they have any questions.