DLUHC has announced it is to make over £8 million available to local authorities to "bolster" their enforcement activity against owners and developers of high rise residential properties requiring repairs to be made to cladding post the Grenfell fire tragedy.

In a letter covering the state of the private rented sector to Parliament's Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee, Housing Minister Felicity Buchan MP advised that there appear to be 260,000 fewer PRS households today than 5 years ago. She also advised the committee that, in relation to selective licensing, the Government doesn't collect data on the income derived by local authorities from housing enforcement activity.

If the proposed additional licensing scheme for smaller HMO properties is approved by the council it is set to commence in April 2023. The previous additional licensing scheme ended in September this year.

The point is that all councils, one way or another, must be able to evidence their private rented sector (PRS) housing enforcement activity. This is even more so the case now, following the recent letter sent by Michael Gove MP to all council leaders and chief executives in England demanding details of their housing enforcement activity relating to damp and mould issues in both the social and private rented sector.

A landlord who failed to licence a house in multiple occupation (HMO) under Haringey Council's boroughwide additional licensing scheme must repay over £10,000 of rent to 4 tenants under a rent repayment order (RRO).

An extra £50 million of funding is being made available for councils this winter to help the most vulnerable households to pay off rent arrears or find new accommodation if they are being evicted.

Derbyshire Dales District Council, Amber Valley Borough Council and Erewash Borough Council will share the funding to target poor quality PRS housing standards over a 2 year project period. The partnership project should enable the councils to each inspect 500 PRS properties per 12 month period over the 2 years of the study in order improve housing enforcement outcomes in the PRS.

Middlesbrough Council is carrying out a public consultation on extending the private rented sector selective licensing scheme currently in place in the Newport area of the borough. The consultation will run until 30th January 2023.

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health has written to Michael Gove MP saying that the Government needs to make it easier for councils to use selective licensing conditions as a method of housing enforcement.

After carrying out a 3 month public consultation which received over 1000 responses, Portsmouth Council is to bring in additional licensing of smaller private rented sector HMO (houses in multiple occupation) properties with the scheme set to start on 1st September 2023.