Officers are undertaking Selective Licensing compliance visits and continuing to deal with complaints about disrepair, however, internal housing inspections may not be undertaken unless deemed to be essential. Alternative methods of assessment may be used such as photographs or video. 

Selective Licensing Public Notice

The Housing Act 2004 gives local authorities powers to designate areas for the Selective Licensing of private rented property. Selective Licensing aims to improve these neighbourhoods by driving up property management practice and property standards in the private rented sector. It may also help to solve other issues contributing to poor property condition and low demand within a neighbourhood.

The documents below provide maps of each of the areas and a list of addresses, which are subject to periodic review and update.

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We will be accepting applications for the scheme beginning 1 October 2020 from 1 September 2020 onwards and we will update this webpage when more details are available.

It is a criminal offence to let a privately rented property in a designated Selective Licensing area without a licence. Failure to apply for a licence or failure to comply with the conditions of the licence could lead to an unlimited fine on conviction or a Civil Penalty Notice of up to £30,000 being issued by the Council. The Council and/or tenants, including former tenants, may also apply for a Rent Repayment Order (RRO) to reclaim up to 12 months’ rent from the landlord where a property is, or was, required to be licensed.

Background

Wirral has areas of low housing demand and almost 1 in 3 properties in Wirral’s private rented sector fails to meet the decent homes standard. Selective Licensing aims to improve homes in these areas by ensuring private landlords and agents meet satisfactory standards of tenancy and property management.

Holders of licenses are required to comply with the conditions of the Selective Licence. In addition, a team of Healthy Homes Advocates are working in each of the Selective Licensing areas offering residents free advice and services relating to a range of health and housing issues. Find out more how Healthy Homes can do for you.

Wirral designated 4 selective licensing areas beginning 1 July 2015 and ending 30 June 2020. These 4 areas along with 2 new areas have been designated again (originally from 1 July 2020 but now been delayed due to the current Covid 19 situation) to begin 1 October 2020 and ending 2025. A further 4 Selective Licensing areas began on 1 April 2019 and these will end on 31 March 2024.

In the original four areas, more than 1,300 licences have been granted and more than 830 properties have received a compliance check.  Of those properties which have been inspected, over 70% have required improvements to the property or management practices to bring them up to the required standard.

Homes that fail to meet the required standard have a detrimental impact on the health and welfare of those who live in them, which also impacts on local communities.

Most landlords have been co-operative in making improvements. The Council has taken a tough stance on poor landlords in these areas with 50 prosecutions achieved to date.

How to apply for a Selective Licence

If you are a property owner or a managing agent of privately rented accommodation within one of the designated selective licensing areas, you can complete an online application.

Apply online for a licence

A paper application can be made, however an additional fee of £50 for the administration of the paper applications will apply. If you wish to be sent paper application forms please email selectivelicencing@wirral.gov.uk

It is the responsibility of the property owner, manager or managing agent to ensure the property has a valid licence at all times.

Current licence fees

  • Selective Licensing Scheme (designated on 1 April 2019) - £645
  • Selective Licensing Scheme (designated on 1 October 2020) - £595

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Penalties and Sanctions

Prosecution

Failure to apply for a licence when required is an offence punishable on summary conviction to an unlimited fine. Alternatively, a Civil Penalty Notice of up to £30,000 can be issued.

Repayment of rent

Tenants including former tenants living at the property whilst it was unlicensed or the Council may apply to the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) for a Rent Repayment Order (RRO) to reclaim up to 12 months’ rent from the landlord.  Apply for an RRO.

Failing to comply with licence conditions

Anyone failing to comply with licence conditions commits an offence punishable on summary conviction to an unlimited fine per offence.  A Civil Penalty Notice up to £30,000 is an alternative sanction available to the local authority.

More information

For further guidance on the application process email selectivelicensing@wirral.gov.uk.

You can also write to:

Selective Licensing
Wallasey Town Hall
Brighton Street
Wirral
CH44 8ED

Members of the public can view the public register that gives the details of landlords who have a licence for their property. To make an appointment to view this register please write to the Selective Licensing Team at the above address or alternatively email selectivelicensing@wirral.gov.uk.

Wirral Council reserves the right to charge for this service in accordance with Section 232(5) of the Housing Act 2004.

Selective licence properties and landlords

The Selective Licensing Register is currently unavailable via the council's portal. If you wish to view the register, please telephone 0151 691 8132.

Selective Licence Bulky Waste Collection Service

The Selective Licence Bulky waste collection service is a free scheme which can be accessed by current licence holders of licenced residential properties situated within Wirral Council’s designated selective licence areas.

This service is operated by the council to assist licence holders in disposing of large household items from rented accommodation. A maximum of 12 bin bags (or equivalent) can be arranged to be collected by appointment with the council on a pre-set day. The maximum number of collections per calendar year has been set at 2.

Email the completed form to: selectivelicensing@wirral.gov.uk

Annual Monitoring Reports

As part of the Business Cases agreed by Wirral Council’s Cabinet for the 2019-24 and 2020-25 Selective Licensing schemes, an annual report for each scheme is to be produced and published on the Council’s website. The annual reports include statistics on outputs that can give an indication as to the schemes’ impact upon areas, as well as an overall summary of the schemes’ delivery.

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Selective Licence documents archive

Selective licensing consultation - 2020 designation

The designation of four of the Selective Licensing areas in Wirral is due to end on 30 June 2020. Wirral Council is proposing to re-designate these areas. The council is also looking to introduce Selective Licensing in two new areas.

The consultation closed on Monday 14 October 2019, all representations were considered and a report was presented to Wirral Council’s Cabinet on 24 February 2020, where it was agreed to redesignate the Selective Licensing scheme into the four areas introduced in July 2015 and extend it to designate two more areas in the Borough. These areas are indicated in the following maps and lists of streets.

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Information on why these areas are selected for the proposals can be found in the business case below.

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Selective Licensing Public Notice

2015 designation

Following the consultation, all representations were considered and a report was presented to Wirral Council’s Cabinet on 12 March 2015 and full council on 16 March 2015, where it was agreed to designate a selective licensing scheme in 4 areas in Wirral. The consultation on proposals for selective licensing in the 4 areas currently designated closed on Wednesday 18 February 2015.

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2018/19 designation

Extending Selective Licensing in Wirral

On 1 April 2019 selective licensing commenced within 4 additional areas of Wirral. The following links to the public notice and the maps advise of the areas affected.

Selective Licensing Public Notice

View each area for a detailed map and list of addresses included in the proposed areas. The 4 additional areas are below.

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The 4 new areas were identified in a similar way as the original areas, using research by Wirral Council’s Intelligence Team which identified key areas suffering from low housing demand and poor property condition, as well as higher than average rates of private rented homes. Following consultation, all representations were considered and a report was presented to Wirral Council’s Cabinet on 1 October 2018, where it was agreed to designate selective licensing into a further 4 areas of the Wirral.

The Supporting Evidence and Rationale and Business Case documents below provide the reasoning and context behind the 2019 designation. These are supported by the public and stakeholder consultation findings document.

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Selective Licensing Public Notice

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