Before becoming a driver, there are several requirements that must be met.
The first is an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, which includes a check on the children and vulnerable adults barred list. It is a criminal offence for people on barred lists to apply to work in a regulated activity and offenders are reported to the police. Original certificates are required to be provided to the council.
Where licence applicants (including vehicle proprietors and operators) have been outside of the UK for three or more months continuously since the age of 18, they are required to provide a Certificate of Good Character/Conduct.
Where there is information on the applicant’s DBS certificate or Certificate of Good Character/Conduct, this is considered in accordance with the Council’s Guidelines on Fitness and Propriety. These guidelines have been consulted on with the industry, police, courts and all other councils. The guidelines have been benchmarked against the Institute of Licensing’s Guidance and the Government’s Statutory Standards and in both documents cases, the Council’s rehabilitation periods are longer. The Council’s Guidelines are regularly reviewed and were last approved on 10 July 2024, following a review as a result of the Government’s Best Practice Guidance published on 17 November 2023.
Drivers must have held a driving licence for at least one year and this licence is checked as part of the application process. Where there are motoring convictions, these are also considered against the Council’s guidelines.
Drivers must undergo medical certification to Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Group 2 Standards. This may only be completed by a General Medical Council (GMC) registered practitioner.
Drivers must attend a one-day driver training programme, provided independently by Worcestershire County Council. This training is only available in English and covers the following:
- A face-to-face English assessment (followed by a recorded interview where there are any concerns)
- Safeguarding children and vulnerable adults
- Child Sex Exploitation (CSE) awareness
- Modern Slavery
- Licence conditions
- Vehicle conditions
- The licensing process
- Enforcement and compliance
- Plying for hire
- The Health Act 2006
- Environmental Protection Act 1990
- Customer safety
- Customer care
- Disability awareness
- Road and passenger safety
- Personal safety
- Suicide awareness
- Counter terrorism
This syllabus is regularly reviewed, including with the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) and Partnership Strategic Exploitation Co-ordinator. At the end of the training programme, there is a written assessment. Across 2021 and 2022, 55% of applicants failed this assessment.
Where there are concerns about applicants suspected of involvement in historic child sex exploitation investigations, further vetting is undertaken by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Applicants are also required to disclose any previous licensing history. Enquiries are made with those authorities and any previous complaints considered with the Council’s Guidelines. Licensees are also required to notify Licensing Services of any new licences with any other licensing authority, as well as if they are reviewed, suspended or revoked.
The applicant is also checked against the National Anti-Fraud Network’s (NAFN) National Register of Refusals, Revocations and Suspensions (NR3S). The Council uploaded all its historic computer data to this register and all refusals by the Council are added to this register. Where a matching record is found, information is requested from the licensing authority and a licence will not be granted until this information is considered.
Finally, the driver must attend our offices in person, where they undergo facial verification against their driving licence and proof of right to work in the UK, as well as presenting their original DBS certificate. We use a state-of-the-art system which uses the same technology as can be found at Border Control’s ePassport Gates in UK airports.
If the applicant is renewing their licence or has held the same licence within the last 12 months, they must provide an HMRC Tax Check code to show that they registered to pay tax.
It is only after these checks have been satisfied that an applicant can become a licensed driver.
Once a driver licence is granted, we continue to monitor them. We use the DBS Update Service to check drivers’ DBS certificates every day of the week. Where new information is found, their licence is reviewed. An enquiry is also made to the DBS to determine whether the information is that the driver has been added to a barred list and is prohibited from working with children and/or vulnerable adults.
If their licence is revoked, this decision is recorded on NR3S, in case the driver tries to apply for a licence at another authority. The Council also considers whether the complaints against the driver necessitate consideration by the Disclosure and Barring Service for the former driver to be added to the children and/or vulnerable adults barred lists.
The driver can only undertake work in a vehicle licensed by City of Wolverhampton Council. Annual DBS checks are also carried out on vehicle licence applicants, as well as a check that the vehicle is insured for public and/or private hire. A Ministry of Transport (MOT) certificate dated no more than 10 days prior to the application date must also be provided. The vehicle is then checked in person by our trained vehicle inspectors. Operator door signage is prohibited by Wolverhampton, to prevent it being used as a de facto identifier of a licensed vehicle, as operator signage is easy to fraudulently produce, buy and steal. This is to reduce the risk of the public unknowingly using unlicensed vehicles.
Licence conditions issued as of 1 August 2024 require drivers to undertake a daily walkaround check of their vehicle before commencing work. The checks required can be seen here: https://taxiwalkaround.wolverhampton.gov.uk/
We also undertake Compliance Operations throughout the year, including Friday and Saturday nights to ensure safety for visitors to the night-time economy. Whilst people apply to Wolverhampton from all over the country, we conduct compliance operations all over the country. In 2023, we covered:
Accrington, Altrincham, Altrincham, Ashton Under-Lyne, Banbury, Barnsley, Bilston, Birmingham (including the airport), Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Bootle, Brierley Hill, Bristol (including the airport), Bromsgrove, Bury, Bury, Cambridgeshire and Cambridge, Cardiff, Cardiff, Chasetown, Cheadle, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Cherwell District, Cheshire, Chester, Clitheroe , Codsall, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe, Darwin, Derby, Derby, Didsbury, Doncaster, Doncaster, Droylsden, Dudley, East Midlands (including the airport), Ely, Essex, Gloucestershire, Greater London, Greater Manchester, Halifax, Hampshire, Hants, Harlow, Harlow, Havant, Heathrow, Hertfordshire, Himley, Hoylake, Huddersfield, Hull, Humberside, Huntingdonshire, Huyton, Hyde, international train station and NEC), Isle of Sheppey, Kent, Kingston upon Hull, Knowsley, Knowsley, Knowsley, Knowsley, Lancashire, Lancashire, Leeds, Leicester, Leicester, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, Liverpool, Liverpool, Liverpool, London, Loughborough, Lytham St Annes, Lythe, Macclesfield, Manchester (including the airport), Merseyside, Middlesborough, Nantwich, Newcastle under Lyme, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newport, Newport , North Oxfordshire, North Yorkshire, Northwich, Nottingham , Nottinghamshire, Old Trafford, Oldbury, Oldham, Oswestry, Oxfordshire, Penkridge, Perton, Pontefract, Portsmouth & Havant, Preston, Ramsgate & Margate, Redditch, Rochdale, Rotherham, Rotherham, Sale and Fallowfield, Salford, Sandwell, Sefton, Sheffield, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Smedley, Somerset, South Staffordshire, South Wales, South Yorkshire, Southport, Speke, St Albans, St Helens, Staffordshire, Stockport, Stockton, Stoke on Trent, Stratford-upon-Avon, Swinton, Tameside, Teesside, Telford, Tipton, Trafford, Tyneside, Uttoxeter Races, Wakefield, Walsall, Warrington, Warrington, Warwick, Warwickshire, West Bromwich, West Yorkshire, Westhoughton, Weston Super Mare, Wigan, Wolverhampton, Wombourne, Worcester, Wythenshawe and Yorkshire (including York).Officers from the respective licensing authority are invited to these operations and we often work in partnership with the local police force and representatives from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). All Compliance Officers are City and Guilds qualified basic vehicle examiners. The Council has never refused a request from a licensing authority for a compliance operation in their area.
Importantly, our driver conditions dictate that drivers must cooperate with reasonable requests from compliance staff authorised in other areas. Any breach of this condition would be looked on most unfavourably:
3.9 A private hire licence is a badge of approval, it states the Local Authority feels the holder is fit and proper and suitable in every way. The standard of behaviour and level of trust expected should be demonstrated in the conduct of those licensed at all times. This includes when drivers are operating beyond the boundary of the licensing authority, where drivers are expected to co-operate with reasonable requests from compliance staff authorised in other areas.
This condition empowers officers in other areas and where drivers are breaking the law then other licensing authorities can and do prosecute them. The Council also is piloting joint-authorisation of enforcement officers in Milton Keynes, with consideration given to expand thing across the country.
Checks for those applying to be a Private Hire Vehicle Operator include:
- Information Commissioner’s Registration number, to prevent illegal use of personal data.
- The business premises is in Wolverhampton, which must be accessible 24/7 by our officers.
- Proof of right to work in the UK.
- Checks with other licensing authorities the operator has or is licensed by.
- An annual Basic DBS check.
- Attendance at the Private Hire Driver Training Programme.
- Awareness of tax responsibilities and on renewal their tax registration.
It should be noted that there is no provision in legislation to refuse to consider an application from an individual who lives outside of Wolverhampton. As such, the Council considers those applications and where the applicant is ‘fit and proper’, a licence is granted.
As of 2023, the service is being audited annually. The service has never failed an audit.
If you have a complaint about a driver, vehicle proprietor or operator, you can provide information at Taxi Complaints or call our dedicated complaints line 01902 55 TAXI.
Where complaints are made, the Council has a key performance indicator (KPI) for all complaints involving safeguarding concerns to be investigated within one day. The Council is 100% compliant with this KPI.