This meeting was to consider the findings and recommendations of the Private Rented Sector in Lewisham Task and Finish Group, which had been looking at the problems faced by tenants and landlords in the borough. The meeting was also to note the minutes of the group's previous meetings on 21 September 2023 and 27 March 2024. Any decisions made during this meeting are not yet publicly available.

Draft Report and Recommendations

Councillors were asked to agree the final report of the Private Rented Sector in Lewisham Task and Finish Group, which is attached as Appendix A (03. Appendix A- PRS TFG Draft Report) to the Draft Report and Recommendations report.

The Task and Finish Group was set up by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 4 July 2023 to explore how the council could improve its communication with, and its services for, residents in the private rented sector.

The report makes eighteen recommendations for the council to consider, split into those for short term and medium term action. The report says:

The TFG acknowledges the resource challenges associated with some of the recommendations. Nevertheless, the purpose of this Group’s findings is to enhance the Council’s support offer for residents in the private rented sector (PRS) and it is essential to take steps toward achieving that improvement.

Short term Actions

The eight recommendations for short term action by the council are:

1. Enhancing the Council's PRS webpage: The Council should redesign its website to make the information it provides about the private rented sector clearer and more easily accessible for both renters and landlords. The report says that: > Currently, the information on the Council’s website is poorly structured, making it difficult to find necessary information. The website also contains broken links and lacks essential contact information, which highlights an urgent need for a redesign of the website that includes better signposting information for residents in the private rented sector.
2. Training Councillors to support PRS residents: Lewisham Councillors should be trained to understand how they can assist residents with private rented sector issues.
3. Enhanced communication with landlords:
   • The council should establish a Landlord Forum that meets regularly.
   • Landlords should be asked to sign up for e-bulletins when they apply for property licences, and the e-bulletins should be used to share information, such as updates on legislative changes or regulatory requirements.
4. Publicising enforcement actions:
   • The council should publicise any enforcement action against rogue landlords on its website and social media channels, via landlord e-bulletins and on the GLA's Rogue Landlord Checker.
5. Collaboration with the NRLA: The council should work more closely with the National Residential Landlords Association to share information with landlords and organise Landlord Forum meetings and training events.
6. Improving communication with tenant support organisations: The council should make it easier for tenant advocacy organisations to contact them.
7. Defining the role of the Cabinet Advisor for the PRS: The role of the Cabinet Advisor for the Private Rented Sector should be more clearly defined. The Task and Finish Group recommends that they should:
   • have a detailed role profile with specific focus areas;
   • play a key role in raising the profile of PRS issues; and
   • be actively involved in monitoring the recommendations in the report.
8. Ongoing monitoring and reporting: The Housing Select Committee should monitor the implementation of the report’s recommendations and produce a report on private rented sector performance, tracking key indicators like the number of enforcement fines issued.

Medium Term Actions

The ten recommendations for medium term action by the council are:

1. Establish a Lewisham PRS Stakeholder Forum: The council should establish a forum with all the key stakeholders in the private rented sector in Lewisham, such as:
   • council officers and Cabinet Members;
   • tenant advocacy organisations such as Shelter, Generation Rent, Renters Rights London, and Citizen's Advice;
   • landlord advocacy organisations such as the NRLA; and
   • other stakeholders such as the Metropolitan Police and Goldsmiths, University of London housing services.
2. Tenant Rights: Awareness Campaign: The council should launch a communications campaign to inform private renters about their rights and responsibilities and the services available to them.
3. Engaging private renters: The council should find more informal ways to engage with private renters, working with:
   • faith groups;
   • charities; and
   • Lewisham Health and Wellbeing Community Champions
4. Resources for community leaders and other organisations providing advice: Staff and volunteers from community and faith groups and other non-housing charities should be provided with information about the private rented sector so they can tell tenants about the help that is available to them.
5. Establishing a PRS telephone helpline: A telephone helpline should be set up specifically for residents in the private rented sector.
6. Introducing some face-to-face services: The council should offer some face-to-face support to private renters making homelessness applications or facing eviction.
7. Enhancing property inspections: The council should work towards inspecting 100% of licensable properties.
8. Promoting cross-departmental collaboration: The council should make sure the private rented sector is considered in other areas of its work.
9. Developing a standalone PRS strategy: The council should develop a specific strategy for the private rented sector.
10. Informed advocacy: The council should use the report’s findings to inform its responses to future consultations on legislation affecting the private rented sector.

Declarations of Interest

Councillors were asked to declare any personal interests they have in any item on the agenda for the meeting, as required by the Lewisham Member Code of Conduct.

There are three types of personal interest referred to in the Code:

1. Disclosable pecuniary interests
2. Other registerable interests
3. Non-registerable interests

The 02. Declarations of Interest report explains these different types of interest.

Minutes of the previous meetings

The meeting was also to note the minutes of the two previous meetings of the Private Rented Sector in Lewisham Task and Finish Group:

• The meeting on 21 September 2023, the minutes of which are attached as 01. Minutes of the previous meetings
• The meeting on 27 March 2024, the minutes of which are attached as Draft Minutes- 27 March 2024