Amber Valley Borough Council has a responsibility for licensing hackney carriages and private hire vehicles, drivers, and operators within the district of Amber Valley.
The grant of all licences shall be considered in the context of the Amber Valley Borough Council Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy, relevant legislation, and guidance subject to the licensing conditions.
The aim of licensing of the Hackney Carriage ("Taxi") and Private Hire Vehicle ("PHV") trade is, primarily, to protect the public as well as to ensure that the public have reasonable access to taxi and PHV services because of the part they play in local transport provision.
Its purpose, therefore, is to ensure the system is operated by 'fit and proper' persons and to prevent licences being given to or used by those who are not suitable persons taking into account their driving record, their driving experience, their sobriety, mental and physical fitness, honesty, that they are people who would not take advantage of their employment, and to ensure that hackney carriages and private hire vehicles in the district are safe, and that the powers are exercised in compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights.
Following approval from Full Council on the evening of 26 March 2025, amendments have been made to the Policy to remove the requirement for a new Enhanced DBS certificate to be provided by a licensed driver on each 3-yearly renewal. The Council will instead carry out periodic Update Service checks through the DBS Multi Status Check Facility to check the currency and validity of certificates presented to the Council.
Please note that, should the check indicate that the information held on a certificate has changed, the licence holder will be required to obtain a new Enhanced DBS certificate to present to the Council for consideration.
Should the Update Service check result indicate that a subscription has lapsed resulting in the Council being unable to confirm the currency and validity of the certificate, the driver’s licence will be suspended with immediate effect and will remain suspended until such time as a new Enhanced DBS certificate is presented and a satisfactory Update Service check can be carried out.
The requirement for a certificate to be less than one month old at the time it is presented to the Council has also been removed for both existing licence holders and new applicants, provided they present a certificate for the correct sector and the currency and validity can be confirmed via the Update Service. Those new applicants that cannot present a certificate for the correct sector will be required to obtain an Enhanced DBS certificate for the relevant sector and subscribe to the Update Service.
There is currently a facility in existence whereby drivers or proprietors can apply for a grant from the Government to assist in the purchase of 'greener' vehicles and 'Plug-in Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles'. Eligibility and application information can be accessed at www.gov.uk/government/publications/plug-in-wheelchair-accessible-vehicle-grants-eligibility-and-applications/plug-in-wheelchair-accessible-vehicle-grant-eligibility-and-applications.
The current Hackney Carriage Tariff Table can be found by using the link below.
Contact the team directly on 01773 570222 or email licensing@ambervalley.gov.uk
