Meta description: Check when your campsite needs entertainment permission, a PRS PPL music licence, or both for live and recorded music in 2026.
Hello, landowners and campsite operators. Check these two separate music rules before you book a band or turn on a speaker.
Two separate regimes for campsite music
A campsite music licence can mean two different things.
First, check the Licensing Act 2003. This controls regulated entertainment. You may need a local council premises licence or a Temporary Event Notice (TEN).
Then check copyright. TheMusicLicence from PPL PRS Ltd covers certain public uses of music. It sits outside the Licensing Act.
You may need one, both, or neither. An exemption under one regime does not create an exemption under the other.
Keep planning separate too. Your campsite’s planning route, including permitted development rights or a temporary-use limit such as the 28-day rule where applicable, does not decide whether you can hold live music at campsites. Check each set of rules for your site.
For a wider look at land-use rules, read our guide to the legal framework for campsites and learn more about unlocking your land’s potential.
What the Live Music Act 2012 exempts
The Live Music Act 2012 changed when some live and recorded music counts as regulated entertainment. Check the exact conditions. Do not treat the exemption as a general permit for campsite events.
Live or recorded music needs no Licensing Act authorisation when all three conditions apply:
- It takes place between 8am and 11pm.
- It takes place at premises licensed for the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises.
- The audience is no more than 500 people.
This can cover a pub campsite with a premises licence that holds an acoustic night for campers. Keep the event within the hours and audience limit. Check the premises licence and any conditions that apply.
Unamplified live music has a separate exemption. It needs no Licensing Act authorisation at any place between 8am and 11pm. A folk singer in a tent field can fall within this rule.
Amplified live music at a workplace can also be exempt between 8am and 11pm, if the audience is no more than 500. But a campsite field is generally not a workplace. Do not rely on this exemption for your site without checking the facts.
Recorded music at a premises that is not licensed for alcohol sales may need authorisation. That matters for many pop-up farm campsites. A DJ set or speaker playlist for an audience can be regulated entertainment.
Any entertainment between 11pm and 8am needs authorisation. Finish by 11pm to stay within the main exemption window. A 10pm finish gives you more time to close down.
Other rules cover different activities. A play or dance performance can be exempt between 8am and 11pm for an audience of 500 or fewer. Boxing, wrestling and mixed martial arts always need a licence. A film screening always needs a licence. Exemptions also apply to some places, including places of worship, village and church halls, schools, hospitals and local authority premises. Music that is incidental to another activity may also be exempt.
Read the government’s entertainment licensing guidance before you rely on an exemption.
What can a farm campsite do without a licence?
Start with three questions. Is the music live or recorded? Is it amplified? Is the site licensed for on-sales of alcohol?
For an unlicensed farm campsite, unamplified live music between 8am and 11pm may need no Licensing Act authorisation. If you play no recordings, this can also mean no TheMusicLicence is needed for that event.
Change one detail and the answer may change. Amplified music or recorded playlists for an audience at an unlicensed site may need a TEN for each event night, or a premises licence. Recorded music may also need TheMusicLicence.
For a pub campsite, live or recorded music between 8am and 11pm for up to 500 people may need no Licensing Act authorisation if the premises has the relevant alcohol licence. You may still need TheMusicLicence for recorded music.
Do not assume that a music exemption removes noise limits, planning rules, campsite conditions or other legal duties. Check the rules that apply to your exact site and event.
The TEN route for a one-off event
If your campsite is not alcohol-licensed, a TEN may authorise a one-off event with amplified music or entertainment after 11pm. Apply to your local council and check the current limits and notice requirements before you advertise.
An earlier article covers Temporary Event Notices in full detail, including the attendance limit, annual limits, notice periods and fee. Read our campsite licensing and insurance checklist for the TEN route.
If you plan regular events, consider applying for a premises licence instead. One premises licence can cover different types of regulated entertainment and the sale or supply of alcohol. Speak to your council before you apply.
Remember, a TEN or premises licence does not replace your campsite planning permissions or permitted development conditions. Keep those checks separate.
TheMusicLicence: when you need it and what it costs
You usually need TheMusicLicence if you play recorded music in public or at your business. That includes music from a radio, CD or music channel.
At a campsite, check every shared area. Recorded music in reception, a wash-up area or a bar can count. Music at events can count too. A playlist from a phone or speaker does not avoid the copyright rules.
TheMusicLicence comes from PPL PRS Ltd. It replaces the need to seek separate licences from PRS for Music and PPL for the covered uses.
The cost depends on the venue and how you use the music. PPL PRS offers a check-and-quote service. Ask them to confirm the rate for your campsite, event type and music use.
Contact PPL PRS at customerservice@pplprs.co.uk or call 0800 0720 808, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.
You do not need TheMusicLicence to play royalty-free music. Check the terms and keep proof that the music is royalty-free.
Playing protected live or recorded music in public without the required copyright permission can lead to a claim for damages. That risk is separate from whether the Licensing Act requires a premises licence or TEN. Do not assume that an entertainment exemption gives you copyright permission.
Keep music and neighbours in mind
Music can create a statutory nuisance risk, even when you have the right entertainment authorisation. Under section 80 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the council must serve an abatement notice if a nuisance exists or is likely to recur. A business can face an unlimited fine for breaching a notice.
A council can also review a premises licence where music causes noise problems. Keep your event nights short, finish early and log what happens.
Our earlier guide explains noise, statutory nuisance and abatement notices at pop-up campsites. Read it before you set your event schedule.
Five quick checks before your campsite event
- Name the music. Decide whether it is live or recorded, amplified or unamplified.
- Check the site. Confirm whether your premises licence covers the event area and alcohol sales.
- Check the audience and hours. Keep any relevant exemption limits in view, finish by 11pm.
- Check copyright. Contact PPL PRS if you will play recorded music, check whether a licence is already in place.
- Write down your plan. Record the permissions, event times, music use and steps you will take to manage noise.
Plan your campsite music licence before you book
Check your music plan before you announce a date. Ask your local council about regulated entertainment. Ask PPL PRS about recorded music. Keep your campsite planning route and music permissions on separate checklists.
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