Born in Church Gresley in Derbyshire, Street worked at the Warsop Main Colliery from an early age.
In this role, he persuaded other members and management not to form a branch of George Alfred Spencer's rival Nottinghamshire and District Miners' Industrial Union.
[1] Despite working in Nottinghamshire, Street lived in Shirebrook in Derbyshire, and was active in the Labour Party there.
[1] In 1941, Street was elected to the council of the Derbyshire Miners' Association (DMA).
[1] In 1947, he moved to become treasurer of the reconstituted Derbyshire Area of the National Union of Mineworkers, serving until his retirement in 1966.