Islington's New Property Licensing Scheme

Following a period of consultation, Islington Council have expanded their current selective license scheme into new areas within the Finsbury Park ward and have added the new wards of Tollington and Hill Rise.

The new scheme will come into force on 20^th May 2024 and applications are open from 1^st April 2024.

Any landlord letting a licensable property without holding an appropriate licence, or allows a licensed property to be occupied by more households or persons other than as authorised by a licence in the borough of Islington, is at risk of prosecution under Section 95(1) of the Housing Act 2004.

There are currently three types of licensing schemes available in the borough.

Mandatory

House or flats with 5 plus unrelated people, forming 2 or more households, that share a bathroom, kitchen or the toilet.

Buildings occupied by 5 plus unrelated people, that form 2 or more households and consist of bedsits or flats, that are not fully self-contained i.e. the occupiers are required to leave their accommodation to use the kitchen or bathroom.

Additional

All houses or flats where 3 or 4 unrelated people form 2 or more households and share a bathroom, toilet, or kitchen.

All buildings occupied by 3 or 4 unrelated people that form 2 or more households and consist of bedsits or flats which are not fully self-contained i.e. the occupiers have to leave their bedsit/flat to use a bathroom.

Any building that has been converted into self-contained flats where the conversion standard does not meet the required Building Regulations 1991 act and where all the flats rented are under one single ownership. This type of accommodation is most commonly known as S257 HMOs.

All flats let to 3 or more unrelated people that form 2 or more households, and are located within a purpose-built block of flats, that is not covered by the mandatory licensing scheme.

Selective Licensing

All privately rented accommodation occupied by either 1 or 2 people, irrespective of their relationship, or occupied by a single household/family and located within: -

Finsbury Park wards, with the exception of the area that was moved out of the old Highbury West ward as part of the ward boundary changes back in 2022.
Tollington ward that was moved out of the Finsbury Park ward during the 2022 ward boundary changes.

To hold the correct property licence, you are required to comply with the HMO or Selective licensing conditions. This allows the property you let out to be properly managed and provides a safe environment for the tenants living there. For mandatory or additional licensing, the property must also come up to prescribed standards.

Further information is available on the Islington Council Property Licensing website.

If you are a current landlord and require further information and advice on whether you need to apply for Property Licensing Schemes in the Borough of Islington, please contact the David Andrew Property Management Office at 235 Blackstock Road, Highbury, N5 2LL, Tel: 020 7354 9222, or email: blackstock@davidandrew.co.uk