Hundreds of thousands of people will benefit from an expansion of a trial aimed at tackling poor housing and protecting taxpayers’ money from rogue landlords.
The scheme – successfully trialled in three council areas – protects public money by stopping it from being wasted on unsafe housing through Rent Repayment Orders.
These legal orders clamp down on landlords who operate properties without the required licence, ignore improvement notices, or leave their houses in mouldy, dire conditions, and will now be expanded to a further 38 local authorities in England – helping to drive up living standards across the country. The scheme gives councils streamlined access to Universal Credit data, which is crucial for completing Rent Repayment Order applications.
One of the trial areas – Camden, North London – is using the data sharing to recover nearly £100,000 in housing support and make a fraud referral, taking taxpayer cash out of the pockets of rogue landlords and back into the public purse.
Following successful results, the scheme – led by the Department for Work and Pensions and supported by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government – is now being expanded. This includes areas such as Enfield, where nearly 30,000 households receiving housing support are set to be better protected for the future.
This comes alongside expanded provisions under the Renters’ Rights Act allowing local authorities to seek Rent Repayment Orders for up to 24 months of rent – double the previous 12-month limit.
“Thanks to this pilot, private renters in receipt of housing support will have stronger protections against landlords who fail to meet public standards,” said Minister for Social Security and Disability Sir Stephen Timms.
“No one should live in unsafe or unsuitable housing. We are giving local authorities the tools they need to deter bad housing practice, and ensuring better value for money by upholding safe standards.”
The 38 further areas set to benefit from the expansion in the scheme include:
- London: Barnet, Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham (LBHF), Waltham Forest, Havering, Lewisham, Tower Hamlets, Enfield.
- North West: Wigan, Sefton.
- Yorkshire & The Humber: Leeds, Rotherham, North Lincolnshire, Calderdale.
- East Midlands: Gedling, Nottingham City, Erewash.
- North East: County Durham, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Gateshead, Northumberland, Darlington.
- South West: Plymouth, Gloucester, Bristol.
- South East: Horsham, Portsmouth, Oxford City.
- East of England: King’s Lynn & West Norfolk, Colchester, Dacorum, Peterborough, East Suffolk.
- West Midlands: Shropshire, Telford, Bromsgrove and Redditch, Coventry.
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