Councils granted funding to tidy up private rented sector
21 councils across Yorkshire and Humberside will receive a share of over £4 million to crack down on criminal landlords and letting agents.
The majority of landlords provide decent homes for their tenants. However a small minority persist in breaking the law, making tenants’ lives a misery by offering inadequate or unsafe housing.
The new £220,000 for each council will enable them to take enforcement action against these landlords, and advise tenants of their housing rights.
This is the latest work by the government to make the private rented sector fairer and stamp out criminal practices for good.
Among the councils in Yorkshire and the Humber to benefit from the funding are:
- 21 councils across Yorkshire and Humberside – to train over 100 enforcement officers across the region to ensure standards are being met by landlords
- Bradford – to educate enforcement officers
- Hull – to carry out data gathering investigations using body cameras
Housing Secretary Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP said: “This government will deliver a better deal for renters. It’s completely unacceptable that a minority of unscrupulous landlords continue to break the law and provide homes which fall short of the standards we rightly expect – making lives difficult for hard-working tenants who just want to get on with their lives.
“Everyone deserves to live in a home that is safe and secure and the funding announced today will strengthen councils’ powers to crack down on poor landlords and drive up standards in the private rented sector for renters across the country.
The grants will support a range of projects to enable councils to make the best use of their powers. Include trialling innovative ideas, sharing best practice and targeted enforcement where we know landlords shirk their responsibilities.
The councils receiving funding today are City of Bradford Metropolitan Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Hull City Council and City of York on behalf of 21 councils across the region.
