Busker fined £11,000 by Shropshire council

Back in December, Jason booked his local music venue for an event in his home town of Shrewsbury.

Jason is a busker, and in the past, he has had issues with the local council regarding selling CDs and noise complaints. Because of this, he preemptively got in touch with them to procure the right licenses and permits to sell tickets for this event. However, he was told that even with the right license, he would not be able to sell tickets on the one and only High Street. This was a huge problem because the majority of ticket sales for his events come when he sells tickets on the street.

he was faced with the choice of either not putting on the show or risking getting in trouble for selling tickets on the street.

Instead of making one of these choices, he decided to try something a little bit different. He decided to make leaflets that stated on the back that he was not legally able to sell tickets on the street; however, people were able to buy tickets online from the QR code on the front of the leaflet, or they could purchase a physical ticket from a local pub around the corner.

The council were suspicious that he was selling tickets on the street and therefore sent someone undercover to try and purchase a ticket from me. He does not remember this encounter, and to his knowledge, he did everything in his power to not sell tickets to people on the street. However, the council had a written account from this person that he had sold them a ticket.

he was also not allowed to hand out leaflets without a permit.

The show was a roaring success. In just a couple of short months, he sold over 300 tickets and had an amazing event that brought people to a small town, and he did it all independently.

Subsequently, after the event, Shropshire Council sent him multiple emails letting him know they suspected him of illegally street trading and asked him for an interview. He complied with this request and went in and did an interview with them to protest his innocence, but when provided with the written account of the person they sent undercover to buy a ticket, it seemed like they had a very strong case against him, even though he does not believe he sold anyone a ticket on the street.

In hindsight, he realized this was probably a bad idea, but after years of what he would define as harassment from the council with regards to complaints, licensing, etc., he just wanted to move away from Shrewsbury and never have to deal with the council again. He figured they just wanted him out of the town, so he gave them exactly what they wanted and left.

Unaware of this court date, he did not attend and was subsequently found guilty of all charges and fined the maximum of £3,500, which was raised to £11,500 from victim surcharges and court costs.

he is, of course, devastated at this result as he assumed the maximum penalty he would be awarded would be £1,000, so he naïvely went about his days thinking the chapter of his life that included the Shropshire Council and their harassment was at an end, but he was very wrong.

He is left today unsure of what to do, as he is just an independent musician trying to pave his own way in a difficult industry. Jason said “ I hold my hands up and take full responsibility for my naivety, and I completely understand I could have and should have handled this situation much better, and ultimately it is me that has to pay for my actions.”

“My issue with the guilty verdict is that it comes with a punishment far exceeding the actual damage of my crime.”

“I do not have the money to pay for this £11,500 fine. I’m hoping, with legal advice and potentially the help of a crowd fundraiser, I can navigate this difficult situation.”