London Borough of Redbridge

There are currently four licensing schemes operating in Redbridge. We will help you choose the right licence for your property.

1. Mandatory HMO licence

In Redbridge you need a mandatory HMO licence if your property meets the standard test, self-contained flat test or converted building test HMO definition in section 254 of the Housing Act 2004 and is occupied by five or more people.

But what are these tests and what does this mean in practice? It means you need a licence for any house or flat that is occupied by five or more people who are not all related and live in the property as their main home. For example, it includes:

• Shared houses and flats occupied by students and young professionals;
• Properties converted into bedsits with some shared facilities; and
• Properties converted into a mixture of self-contained and non self-contained accommodation.  

The government have excluded purpose built self-contained flats within a block comprising three or more self-contained flats from the mandatory HMO licensing scheme. While this will be good news for some landlords, it does make the licensing scheme more complicated.

Read our free guide to mandatory HMO licensing to find out more (here).

 2. Additional licence

In Redbridge, you need an additional licence if your property is let as a House in Multiple Occupation that falls outside the remit of mandatory HMO licensing. It includes properties shared by three or four people who are not all related and share facilities.

The additional licensing scheme started on 18 September 2023, continues for five years and applies borough wide. You can view the public notice in the ‘At a Glance’ box on the top right of this page.

Redbridge Council have included ‘section 257 HMOs: certain converted blocks of flats’ within the additional licensing scheme. These are properties that:

• have been converted into self-contained flats; and
• less than two thirds of the flats are owner occupied; and
• the conversion did not comply with the relevant Building Regulations in force at that time and still does not comply.

The council only include section 257 HMOs where all units of accommodation are privately rented and the building and all the units it contains are in the same ownership or control or considered by the housing authority to be effectively under the same ownership or control.

Read our free guide to additional licensing to find out more (here). 

3. Selective Licence

In Redbridge, there are two selective licensing schemes.

A selective licensing scheme covering the Redbridge Council wards of Valentines and Ilford Town started on 1 November 2023 and continues for five years. In this area, a selective licence is required for all private rented properties occupied by a single household or two unrelated sharers.

A second selective licensing scheme covering the fifteen Redbridge Council wards of Aldborough, Barkingside, Chadwell, Churchfields, Clementswood, Cranbrook, Fairlop, Goodmayes, Hainault, Loxford, Mayfield, Newbury, Seven Kings, South Woodford and Wanstead Village started on 8 April 2024 and continues for five years. In this area, a selective licence is required for all private rented properties occupied by a single household or two unrelated sharers.

You can view the licensing scheme public notices in the ‘At a Glance’ box on the top right of this page.

You can use interactive maps on Redbridge Council’s website to check if your property is within the two selective licensing scheme areas (here) and (here).

Read our free guide to selective licensing to find out more (here).