Film authorisations

The showing of films is a licensable activity under the Licensing Act 2003 and requires either a premises licence, club premises certificate or temporary event notice to be in place before a film is shown to the public.

It is also our responsibility to ensure all films shown to the public have been authorised, either by ourselves or the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).

In addition to authorising films that haven't been classified by the BBFC (generally for festivals or one off screenings), we are able to apply different age restrictions to films already classified by the BBFC for local screening. Requests for reclassification can either be made by the distributor of a film or an independent member of the public.

If you want to apply (doc, 247kb) for a film classification then please read the Film Classification Policy (pdf, 243kb) prior to completing the application form.  The fees payable in relation to the application can be found here.