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Stratford District Taxi Rules Set for Overhaul: Have Your Say

Age limits based on fuel type, six-monthly DBS checks and regular safeguarding training are among the proposals. The district council's consultation closes on 21 December.

By Alex Harrington 2 min read Source: Stratford-on-Avon District Council
Elizabeth House on Church Street, the offices of Stratford-on-Avon District Council
Elizabeth House, Stratford-on-Avon District Council's offices on Church Street. Photo: Jaggery, CC BY-SA 2.0

Stratford-on-Avon District Council wants views on new rules for every taxi and private hire car it licenses, replacing rules brought in in 2009 and last changed in 2013. The Stratford taxi licensing policy consultation is open until Monday 21 December, and anyone can respond: passengers, drivers, operators and businesses. The proposals cover how old a licensed car can be, background checks, training and what passengers can expect.

On this page
  1. What would change
  2. What it means for passengers
  3. How to have your say

What would change

The main proposals in the draft Taxi Licensing Policy 2027 are:

  • Vehicle age limits by fuel: petrol, diesel and LPG cars could be licensed until they’re 12 years old, hybrids until 15, and fully electric or hydrogen cars with no age limit. The current minimum age rule for vehicles would go.
  • Ongoing background checks: drivers would have to subscribe to the DBS Update Service, and the council would check it online every six months. A driver who isn’t subscribed would only get a six-month licence.
  • Training: safeguarding and disability awareness training for every driver, repeated regularly.
  • Assistance dogs and accessibility: clearer guidance on drivers’ legal duties to carry assistance dogs and help disabled passengers. New hackney carriage (taxi rank) licences would only go to wheelchair-accessible vehicles.
  • Enforcement: revised powers for the council’s licensing officers, and use of the national register of drivers who have been refused or had a licence revoked elsewhere.

The council says the aim is to raise standards, strengthen safeguarding and encourage cleaner vehicles, while giving owners more flexibility.

What it means for passengers

The draft spells out what you can expect from a driver. In a hackney carriage, the kind you can hail or pick up from a rank, the driver should use the meter for journeys inside the district unless you’ve agreed a lower fare in advance, and shouldn’t start the meter until you’re in your seat. For trips outside the district, agree the fare before you set off. Private hire cars must be booked through an operator and can’t pick up from ranks. The council isn’t against CCTV or dashcams in licensed cars, but sets out rules for them.

How to have your say

Read the draft and the details on the council’s consultation page, which gives the email address for comments, by 21 December 2026. The council will consider the responses before the final policy goes through its committees for approval. For getting around town, see our train times and bus times pages.

Alex Harrington

Alex Harrington grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and runs What's up, Stratford? as an independent guide to the town.

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