Renters' Reforms
“My Government will help more people to own their own home whilst
enhancing the rights of those who rent.”
● The Government is committed to building back fairer and having
a Better Deal for Renters in England. Later this year we will:
o Publish our consultation response on reforming tenancy law to
abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions and improve security for
tenants in the private rented sector, as well as strengthening
repossession grounds for landlords when they have valid cause.
o Outline proposals for a new ‘lifetime’ tenancy deposit model
that eases the burden on tenants when moving from one tenancy to
the next, helping improve the experience of those living in the
private rental sector.
o Bring forward reforms to drive improvements in standards in
rented accommodation, including by ensuring all tenants have a
right to redress, and ensuring well targeted, effective
enforcement that drives out criminal landlords, for example
exploring the merits of a landlord register.
o We will publish a White Paper detailing this reform package in
the autumn, and legislation will follow in due course.
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● There will be extensive stakeholder engagement working with
the sector to inform and shape reforms. This will ensure the
reforms deliver a private rented sector that works for both
tenants and landlords, while also learning from the pandemic
and its impact on the sector.
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● This reform package is also expected to:
o Require all private landlords to belong to a redress scheme, to
drive up standards in the private rented sector and ensure that
all tenants have a right to redress.
o Consider further reforms of the private renter sector
enforcement system so it is well targeted, effective and supports
improvements in property conditions. This will include a set of
measures to hold bad landlords to account for delivering safe and
decent housing to tenants without penalising good landlords.
o Explore improvements and possible efficiencies to the
possession process in the courts, to make it quicker and easier
for landlords and tenants to use.
● We will continue to deliver on the Social Housing White Paper
proposals, including implementing the Charter for Social Housing
Residents, delivering transformational change for social renters.
We will also continue to develop reform of social housing
regulations and look to legislate as soon as practicable. These
reforms will drive social landlords’ compliance with improved
consumer standards and place social renters’ interests at the
heart of the regulatory system. We have already launched a review
of the Decent Homes Standard, a working group on electrical
safety, and held a consultation on smoke and carbon monoxide
alarms, three key aspects of our commitment to ensure safe and
decent homes, as well as running a national campaign to raise
awareness of how to seek redress.
Key facts
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● There are currently 4.4 million households in the private
rented sector in England, making it the second largest tenure
(19 per cent of households) behind the 15.4 million
households (65 per cent) who are owner occupiers.
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● Support for renters during the pandemic has included a
six-month pause in court possession proceedings between March
and September 2020, which protected 8.4 million households
during the first wave of the pandemic. We increased the
notice landlords are required to provide tenants before
eviction to six months in most cases between 29 August 2020
and 31 May 2021. Restrictions on bailiff enforcement are in
place until 31 May in all but the most egregious cases.
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● Extensive financial support has also been provided for
renters through the furlough scheme and a boost to the
welfare safety net of billions of pounds. This included an
increase in the Local Housing Allowance in April 2020 to
cover at least 30 per cent of market rents – which has
already benefited 1.5 million households by over £600 on
average. We are also providing £140 million for this year
through Discretionary Housing Payments to help people pay
their rent – building on the £180 million provided last year.
