Prostitution in England & Wales

- Favorable Legal Situation

Legislation in England and Wales dictates that sex services must be engaged in only in private and public street solicitation is not allowed. They only allow individual providers not brothels but workers can freely advertise unless as long as the advertising is not overly graphic.

Under the Street Offences Act 1959, it is an offence for a common prostitute to loiter or solicit in a street or public place for the purposes of prostitution. In order to count as a 'common prostitute' and be charged with loitering or soliciting, you must have received at least two 'street cautions' in the last year. A street caution is given verbally on the street, and on the evidence of two or more police officers, and is kept on police records.

Likewise the Kerb crawling law prohibits men from soliciting a women for prostitution on the street or in a public place. The only penalty is a fine. The purpose seems to make sense to avoid harassment of women on the street who are not prostitutes.

It is legal to provide sexual services in a house or flat as long as there is only one person selling sex. If there are more than that, the premises classify as a brothel and you may be at risk from SOA section 33.

It is not illegal to advertise sexual services, although if the ads are extremely graphic and are likely to 'deprave or corrupt ' persons likely to see them, they may fall foul of the Obscene Publications Act 1959.