EVIDENCE FOR CONSULTATION 2021 l southwark.gov.uk/ l Page 4
2. Executive Summary
The growth of the private rented sector (PRS) in Southwark has been accompanied
by an increase in related housing problems. Rising rents have had a huge impact on
affordability and this in turn has led to overcrowding, tenants being made homeless
and a deterioration in property conditions. This situation has been made much worse
by the pandemic, with overcrowding responsible for increases in the rate of virus
transmission and a huge increase in homeless referrals due to financial issues.
The council is committed to improving the management and condition of privately
rented properties in the borough. The recently revised Housing Strategy lays out
some of the plans the council has to support residents with their housing needs,
including those in the PRS. Around 43,000 homes in the borough are privately
rented. Whilst the majority of these are well maintained and safe, there is a growing
minority that are sub-standard and dangerous. Even well-meaning landlords may not
always be up to date with the latest legal and safety requirements. These properties
not only endanger the health, safety and wellbeing of tenants, but cause issues with
neighbours and end up requiring many interventions from already stretched council
teams. The council needs to use all the tools it has to improve the situation for
tenants renting properties in this sector. Licensing is a vital part of this.
The council wants to build on the successes of its previous licensing schemes to
help as many tenants renting in the private sector as possible. The evidence for
these schemes was gathered in late 2019 and the consultation was due to have
been carried out in early 2020. Due to the pandemic, this had to be paused. Despite
this small delay the evidence is still relevant as it reflects:
• the relative proportions of rented properties; this will not have changed
significantly over the period
• the condition of rented properties; this has only been made worse by the
pandemic, due in part to landlords not being able to access their properties
and also to more people being confined to their homes during lockdowns
• trends in deprivation; these have not got better over this period and have
become even more relevant since the pandemic
• incidences of ASB; reports have increased hugely across all wards since the
pandemic.
The pause during the first lockdown gave council had the opportunity to reflect on
the changing needs of the sector and formulate an approach that will help to target
improvements where they are needed across the borough. The best way to do this is
by renewing the borough-wide additional HMO scheme and increasing the
geographical area of the selective scheme.
The council would first like to introduce selective licensing to two small areas to deal
with ASB and poor property conditions. Depending on the feedback from this
consultation, these two designations could be implemented later this year and will
allow the council to deal with some of the most urgent housing issues in the borough.
This first phase will act as a pilot, and, if successful, two further areas could be
added. This larger area would need to be confirmed by the Secretary of State at
MHCLG as the scheme would then cover over 20% of the privately rented homes in
the borough.