A survey of local council private rental licensing schemes says 19 selective and additional licensing schemes and consultations will be taking place within the first four months of 2024.

Already this year six new licensing schemes have begun – they’re in Greenwich, Nottingham, Islington, Warwick, and Luton. 

London takes the lead with active consultations starting in Haringey, Lambeth, Waltham Forest, and most recently Bexley, all indicating council objectives to implement new selective and additional licensing measures across the capital. 

Luton has been the most recent council to implement new licensing schemes, with both additional and selective measures launching this week. 

Fourteen schemes are also set to terminate this year, but with a strong likelihood of scheme renewals. 

The impending Renters Reform Bill and calls for landlords to discontinue selective licensing schemes makes it highly probable that councils will push to renew these measures before the passing of the bill. 

Newham council recently issued its first ever banning order to a landlord letting out an unlicensed property, emphasising the common trend in councils for stronger enforcement against non-compliant agents and landlords in the face of new schemes. 

Orla Shields, chief executive of Kamma – the firm conducting the survey – says: “2024 is a pivotal year for property licensing in the UK. With a record number of new schemes and consultations, the landscape is shifting rapidly. Landlords and agents must be vigilant in ensuring that their properties are licensed “