The Officer Key Decision meeting on Monday 27 April 2026 was scheduled to discuss the implementation plan for the Renters' Rights Act 2025 within the London Borough of Newham. This included a review of the revised Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy and associated financial penalty matrices.

Renters' Rights Act 2025 Implementation Plan for LB Newham

The primary focus of the meeting was the implementation of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (RRA25) in Newham. The RRA25 is described as a significant piece of legislation aimed at creating a fairer private rented sector for tenants and landlords. The report pack detailed that the Act introduces new laws, civil breaches, and criminal offences, with a strong emphasis on enforcement by local authorities. It also noted an increase in the maximum civil penalty for certain offences from £30,000 to £40,000.

The report pack indicated that the council needed to revise its existing Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy to incorporate the RRA25 requirements and updated government guidance. This revised policy, scheduled to take effect from 1 May 2026, includes specific civil penalty starting points, with a discretionary 10% uplift for Newham to reflect above-national-average rents. The policy also outlines adjustments for aggravating and mitigating factors when determining civil penalties.

Key recommendations included:

• A) Approval of the revised Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy to be implemented from 1 May 2026. This policy incorporates government guidelines and includes a 10% uplift on civil penalty starting points to account for Newham's higher average rents.
• B) Delegated authority to the Director of Housing Needs and Head of Private Sector Housing Standards to make minor amendments to the policy as needed.
• C) Delegated authority to the Director of Housing Needs and Director for Law and Governance to finalise any further policies required by subsequent parliamentary orders or statutory instruments to give effect to the RRA25.
• D) Authorisation for the Director of Housing Needs and Director of Legal Services to approve amendments to the Council's Constitution and Scheme of Delegation to empower officers to use the new RRA25 powers.

The report also noted the formation of a Renters' Rights Act Project Board, led by the Director of Housing Needs, to oversee the implementation plan, financial expenditure, and progress.

The RRA25, due to commence on 1 May 2026, aims to provide enhanced protections for private renters, including the abolition of Section 21 no-fault evictions, conversion of tenancies to periodic assured tenancies, and limitations on rent increases. It also introduces stricter grounds for landlords to seek possession of properties.

The report highlighted that preparations for Newham's organisational readiness had been supported by the organisation Operation Jigsaw. An implementation plan (IP) was developed, covering process and policy updates, data collection, recruitment, financial, communication, and training requirements.

The revised Private Sector Housing Enforcement Policy (Appendix 2) details how Newham Council's Private Sector Housing Standards team will regulate and enforce housing and public-health legislation. It outlines the allocation of enforcement responsibilities between the PSHS team (for offences) and the Homelessness Prevention & Advice Service (HPAS) (for breaches), with maximum caps for breaches at £7,000 and £40,000 for offences. The policy also details a new council duty to investigate illegal evictions and sets out civil penalty starting points.

The report discussed financial penalties, noting that the average monthly private rent in Newham is approximately 34% higher than the national average. A 10% general adjustment uplift to all civil penalty starting points was proposed to ensure penalties act as a deterrent in the local market. The policy also details how mitigating and culpability factors, financial considerations, and totality will be applied on a case-by-case basis to adjust penalty amounts.

The report also included an Equalities Impact Assessment (Appendix 3) which concluded that the proposed policy has a strong positive equality impact, particularly for groups disproportionately affected by poor-quality private rented housing, such as disabled residents, minority ethnic households, and low-income families. Mitigating actions include multilingual communications, proportionate enforcement, and officer training.