Community halls and youth clubs are to be exempt from a new licensing charge for the public performance of recorded music as “specially featured entertainment”.

Both groups had originally been in line to pay the charge, but in a second consultation, music licensing body PPL revealed that they would now be excluded.

However, the new exemption is not to be confused with the previously announced charge of 1 per cent of ‘defined income’ for playing music at any sort of event or in charity shops, which community organisations will still be expected to pay.

Instead, the new charge applies to ticketed events involving the likes of DJs, where the use of sound recordings is more prominent than simply background music.

Community buildings and youth clubs will be exempt as long as they are not charging more than £10 per ticket.

David Tyler, chief executive of Community Matters, welcomed the decision, but added that there was still confusion around the distinction between this charge and the previously announced charge.

“To be honest, a lot of the tariffs are highly complex, and there are these supplementary ones and you never know if they apply or not.”