Councils that are banning shouting and swearing are threatening free speech

Max Thompson, Campaigns Officer

11 May 2026

It has been revealed that one in five councils have introduced bans on swearing, offensive language, or shouting. Campaigners have argued that this authoritarian move is making a mockery of criminal law and public enforcement.

A recent survey of just under 300 councils has shown that 61 (20.3%) had introduced bans on swearing and shouting — a significant increase on the 16 recorded in 2022. These restrictions have been imposed through Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs), which have the purported aim of tackling anti-social behaviour and can result in fines of up to £1,000 for breaches.

Under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, councils are only permitted to impose a PSPO if they are satisfied on reasonable grounds that the behaviour in question causes a persistent and continuing detrimental effect on the quality of life of local residents. Section 72 of the Act also requires local authorities to have "particular regard" to the rights of freedom of expression and assembly protected by Articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The survey also revealed that councils had begun to criminalise "everyday behaviour", including standing in groups, foraging for blackberries, feeding birds, or even picking up stones.

The Free Speech Union is concerned about the emerging trend of councils increasingly deploying broad and vague PSPOs to clamp down on and police everyday behaviour and activities in an Orwellian fashion.

In Canterbury, shouting in the open countryside has been banned, with taxpayer money spent on erecting signs to deter those who might wish to raise their voice in a field. In another striking example, a woman in Harrow was reportedly arrested earlier this year for feeding birds — an activity banned by 13 councils.

Guildford Borough Council has moved to ban "intentionally shouting or screaming"; Redditch Council has outlawed "any threatening, abusive, obscene, or offensive language"; and Waverley Borough Council has banned "intentionally or recklessly shouting, swearing, screaming".

Research by the Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life found that 28 councils (14%) had introduced bans on foul or offensive language; 17 (5.7%) had banned swearing; 16 (5.4%) had outlawed shouting or screaming; and 13 (4.4%) had banned verbal abuse. In total, 61 councils have imposed restrictions on language in some form.

Director of the Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life, Josie Appleton, said: "Officials shouldn't be able to punish or restrict anyone on the basis that they might cause 'offence'.

"We urgently need some proper controls to make sure that these powers are tightly worded and only target significant nuisance and harm.

"It is incredible that you could now be handed a fine for swearing in the street, shouting across a road, or staring at someone. Council officers have been given the power to criminalise behaviour that has never before been a matter for the law.

"This isn't tackling antisocial behaviour, it is policing ordinary human expression — controlling the words we can use and the gestures we can make."

As part of her campaign, Ms Appleton is calling for all PSPOs to be passed through the full council and subjected to democratic scrutiny, with an appeals mechanism through the High Court.

The Free Speech Union is no stranger to council overreach and the misapplication of PSPOs. Last year, the FSU successfully challenged Thanet District Council and forced it into an embarrassing U-turn after it attempted to introduce a PSPO banning swearing. The proposed order would have given enforcement officers the power to issue £100 fines for anyone "using foul or abusive language in such a manner that can… cause either alarm or distress to any other person in any public place."

This was the second time in the space of two years that Thanet District Council had attempted to impose a PSPO, and the second time it folded in the face of potential legal action from the Free Speech Union.

Read more in The Telegraph. You can also read the Campaign for Freedom in Everyday Life's report, PSPOs in 2026: 1 in 5 Councils Ban Swearing, here.