Council busybodies charge struggling shops £175 for just one A-board in 'health and safety' push

Ealing Council is charging struggling high street shops £175 to put up a single A-board amid a "health and safety" push.

The Labour-run council brought in the fee earlier this year, sparking a backlash from local businesses that rely on A-boards to draw in customers from the street.

Before April, no licence or payment was needed to display such boards anywhere in the borough.

A council letter dated August 10 warned traders that unlicensed boards on the public highway could face enforcement action and might be "removed and disposed of".

Each additional board requires its own separate licence at the same cost.

South Ealing's Bossa Nova Cafe is leading the fightback, refusing to pay and taking down its board altogether.

The cafe posted on Facebook: "Small independent businesses are already being crippled by rising costs. We pay business rates, licences, utilities and countless other expenses.

"We are NOT paying another £175 a year just to put an A-board outside."

Instead, the business intends to promote its specials and events through its shop window.

Declan Walsh, who runs Poets Winebar on Greenford Avenue in Hanwell, said the council's letter arrived earlier this month.

Mr Walsh, who said his business pays roughly £8,000 every year in business rates, challenged the justification for yet another charge.

He said: "What do I actually pay business rates for?"

The council has framed the scheme as part of efforts to keep pavements safe and accessible for all pedestrians.

A spokesman for Ealing Council said: "The requirement for businesses to obtain a licence for advertising boards on the public highway forms part of the council's wider approach to ensuring pavements remain safe and accessible for everyone."

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They added that the £175 annual fee per board "helps cover the cost of administering and enforcing the scheme".

Boards placed on private forecourts outside a business do not require a licence, the council confirmed separately.

The scheme was discussed by the High Streets Task Force before being approved under delegated officer powers, according to the council.

Permitted boards must be smaller than one metre by 50 centimetres, and cannot be 65 centimetres deep.

Town centre pavements must retain at least 3.5 metres of clear, unobstructed footway, while other streets require a minimum of two metres.

The council has not yet clarified whether any grace period existed between the April launch and the August warning letters.

Businesses that fail to comply could receive a fixed penalty notice, with potential prosecution if it goes unpaid, the council said.

The exact amount of the fixed penalty has not been confirmed.

Councillor Julian Gallant, the Ealing Conservative group leader, called the fee "another tax on businesses in physical premises, already in heavy competition with online trading".

He added: "Ealing's Labour leadership needs to empathise with the Borough's SMEs, provide help wherever possible and minimise regulation. Charging for A-boards is just going to make life a bit harder. We will be strongly opposing this new measure."

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