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Due to essential maintenance, the following systems will be unavailable from 6.00pm on Monday 2 October until 8.00am on Tuesday 3 October: our online council tax, business rates and housing benefit services, and our welfare assistance form. You will also not be able to register to pay council tax online, make a change of address for council tax or cancel single person discount. You are still able to make a payment during this time. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Sign up to a Primary Authority partnership


The Primary Authority partnership provides a framework for you to access assured, reliable advice covering the main regulations around environmental health, trading standards and licensing regulations. It is a scheme enabling a business to form a legal partnership with us that's approved by the Secretary of State.

Who can apply

  • any business, charity or other organisation may be eligible
  • the size of your business does not matter
  • your business may only be in the early stages of development, or only just starting-up
  • you may trade across many council boundaries or just inside one

Who you can partner with

There are two options:

More information is available at Gov.uk: local regulation - primary authorities.

Working in partnership with us

If you choose us as your partner, we will offer you consistent, reliable advice and an accurate interpretation of the law from one source. We will also co-ordinate enquiries from other councils and regulators, and speak to them on your behalf.

Benefits for your business

We can advise you on what is absolutely necessary to comply with the law - saving you time and money. Providing your business follows our advice, this will:

  • ensure you are doing the right things
  • offer protection from legal action from another council or regulator
  • improve your compliance standards, improving your business reputation

Additional services

We can also:

  • deliver training
  • review your policies and procedures
  • audit your business systems
  • audit your business on compliance

Charges

The charge for 2023/24 is £85 per hour with an initial set up fee for preparation (this includes meetings and administration as part of formalising the partnership). You can choose to pay by pay as you go (PAYG), advance purchase of an agreed number of hours or annual purchase of an agreed number of hours.

All prices are reviewed annually. The minimum charge is half an hour, regardless of whether the full half hour is used.

Contact us

Please contact us for an informal chat about Primary Authority partnerships.

Contact us
Primary Authority
03000 261 016