Registration F.A.Q

Why do I have to fill in a Form at all?

The completion of the form is required by legislation, and is mainly for your protection. The relevant legislation is the Employment Agencies Act 1973 (as amended) The Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 1976 (as Amended) and of course the Data Protection Act. Those fields on the form marked with an asterisk (*) are compulsory for legal reasons, mainly obligations upon us to retain the information under the Acts of Parliament listed earlier.

You cannot make an application unless those fields on the form have been completed.

Do I have to fill in the form online?

No, if you would prefer you can download or print and send in by post. Alternatively we can send you a printed copy - simply contact us to request this free service.

Will you accept all applications?

Not necessarily. We need to be sure that Artiste and Agent can both reap rewards from our business relationship, as do you. If we feel that an act is not suited to our Clientele, or if we have information that leads us to believe that a particular act is untrustworthy or likely to behave in an unprofessional manner, or if an act has outstanding debts or County Court Judgements then we would probably decline to accept their application.

We give preference to honest, reliable, trustworthy acts of a high quality that we can rely on to represent themselves and us in a professional manner at bookings. Naturally, we also give the highest preference to those acts who also pay their commissions promptly!

What am I committing myself to?

Basically, nothing much other than you would expect. You agree that you want to be registered with C.E.S., and that you want us to find work for your act. You give us permission to use and distribute your name and promotional materials in order to facilitate us finding you work, and to store your information on our computers. You also confirm that you accept our Terms of Business, and will honour any contracts you accept, and of course that you will pay our commission as it falls due on any booking we negotiate or that arises out of a booking that we negotiate for you.

Will you be employing me?

No. All entertainers seeking employment through C.E.S. must be self employed or registered businesses and must be responsible for their own Tax, National Insurance, and any other statutory obligations.

Any work offered as a result of your application will always be on the basis of a Contract for Services and not a Contract of Employment.

Do I have to accept bookings that you offer me?

Not at all. You are free to accept or reject any offers of work at the time they are offered to you without obligation of any kind. You will have specified the basic parameters of the work you are seeking when you fill out the form, so you should only be offered work of a suitable nature.

If I accept a booking, can I change my mind later on?

No, unless in very exceptional circumstances. Once you agree to a booking verbally, a legally binding contract is in place between you and the booker, and it must be honoured by both of you. However, if you and the booker mutually agree not to go ahead with the booking you can be released from your contract. Note that a fee may be payable to us by one or other of you if this occurs.

Will I get some sort of confirmation of bookings from you?

All bookings are confirmed by the issue of written contracts confirming the details of the verbal agreement previously entered into. Typically you will get a Confirmation / Invoice to keep your records straight whilst contracts are exchanged, and in due course you will have your own copy of the full contract signed by both yourself and the Booker.

Where bookings are undertaken at very short notice the documentation will typically follow after the event to ensure that your records are complete.

How much work will I get from you?

That is impossible to tell, and we can give no guarantee to find you any work at all under an Agency Representation agreement. However, there is always work available for good quality acts, although some types of act can get more work than others. Bagpipe players, for example, are always busy at New Year but often find it harder to get much work at other times. Music acts can often work all year round, but outdoor acts are often limited to the summer months.

The amount of work offered will also depend on how good your promotional material is, how professional you are, and whether our customers actually like your act. If you limit yourself (for example by requesting high fees or refusing to travel more than very short distances) then you can expect less work than an act that offers the customer good value for money and is prepared to travel.

What happens if I have a complaint about the way you deal with me?

We hope that will never happen! However, in the unlikely event that you have a complaint you can talk to your normal contact at C.E.S. in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the result of that discussion you can ask for the matter to be referred to the Managing Director. If you are still not satisfied you can complain to the National Entertainment Agents Council who will investigate and issue a ruling.

You could also complain to the Department of Trade and Industry or proceed directly to court. Full details including contact addresses etc. are given in our Terms of Business.

What if I decide I no longer want you to represent me?

Again, we can't see why that would ever happen! However, if it does we ask for 30 days notice in writing to allow us to remove you from our systems. Printed materials may continue to show your details until used up, but in such a situation we would advise enquirers that you are no longer available through our office.

Can I accept private bookings and bookings from other Agents?

Certainly, unless you have entered into a Sole Agency or Management agreement with us. These cannot be completed online and you would have discussed the terms with a lawyer before entering into the agreement, so you would know if you had done so.

Other than that you are free to accept bookings from any source as long as it does not clash with a booking that you have already accepted, whether through us or otherwise.

It must be made clear that you cannot accept bookings that arise from bookings negotiated through C.E.S. or at Venues or for Clients with whom you have been contracted through us for at least 12 months after your last contracted performance date there.

You must never give out your own business cards or those of other people when on a booking negotiated through this office. Personalised business cards giving our contact details are available free of charge on request.

How much will all this cost me?

We do not charge anything until we have provided you with a service. There is no charge for registration, so you will only pay a commission for bookings that you agree to undertake or the agreed value of any service we provide at your request. Our commission is agreed with you for each individual booking, but is typically 15% nett of prompt payment discount. Depending on the circumstances of the booking and the costs involved the commission we seek may be more or less than this, but you will always know how much you will have to pay and will always have the option to accept or not as you see fit.

C.E.S. is currently registered for VAT and therefore has to charge the tax at the rate ruling at the relevant date on all services provided. See our Terms of Business and Commission Policy for more information