The public consultation opened on November 1st and closes on 31st January with the aim "to ensure that all rented properties are safe and well managed [and] ...... to better understand how and where [the council] can make a difference".

The council has identified 18 borough wards that fit the criteria for selective licensing under the Housing Act 2004 and the council's supporting documentation says that the private rented sector (PRS) in Redbridge has grown from 24% of properties by tenure in 2011 to 36% in 2022 with an estimated 39,848 properties in the borough now in the PRS. The council also says that it's previous selective licensing scheme achieved "positive change" in the borough in relation to housing standards and controlling anti-social behaviour emanating from the PRS.

The objectives of the new scheme are threefold: to reduce overcrowding; to identify category 1 and 2 hazards; to abate those hazards via enforcement. The council points out that during its last 5 year selective licensing scheme, which commenced in 2017, it carried out 10,700 property inspections, identified 1,762 hazards including 998 category 1 hazards and 764 category 2 hazards. It issued 2,096 notices (to improve properties) and served 433 civil penalty notices (fines).

The licensing proposal's evidence for consultation document, which though extensive can be clicked through by chapter heading in the contents page, also contains case studies taken from the previous scheme which include photographs of properties dealt with by the licensing/housing standards team and which evidence deficient property standards and living conditions.

Cllr. Vanisha Solanki, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness said "The consultation is of huge importance as it will help inform the next steps of achieving our wider objective which is to improve the quality of rented homes in Redbridge".