Nearly half the properties covered by Blackpool’s selective licensing scheme have failed to get a licence since it launched almost a year ago.

An estimated 9,000 homes come under the scheme which covers eight wards - Bloomfield, Brunswick, Claremont, Talbot, Tyldesley, Warbreck, Waterloo and Victoria - where landlords must pay £772 for a five-year licence.

Figures vary widely across the country but Oxford Council, for example, reports that it received 10,896 applications in the first year of its scheme which covered 12,300 properties.

Now tenants in Blackpool are being encouraged to ask their landlords if their home is licensed and, therefore, being appropriately managed, and the council warns that properties which remain unlicensed now risk prosecution or fines for landlords.

The authority says that previous additional licensing schemes brought in in South Shore, Claremont and Central since 2012 helped to reduce crime rates by more than half.

Decent

Councillor Paula Burdess, cabinet member for community safety, street scene and neighbourhoods (pictured), says: “While we know that a great many landlords in our town provide a decent standard of housing for residents, as evidenced in the hundreds of homes which meet our high Blackpool Standard, there are still many people living in poor housing. Tenants can ask their landlords if their home has been licensed, and if it meets the higher Blackpool Standard.”

Of these which have already registered, 30% meet the higher Blackpool Standard for property management, offering better quality homes and tenancy management for residents, and discounted licence fees for landlords, while 56% of landlords also qualified for scheme discounts by holding higher EPC ratings.

The Blackpool Standard requires landlords to make a range of documentation and certification available to tenants, including written procedures for dealing with repairs and anti-social behaviour. They must also ensure external areas are free from hazards, and that homes have fully functional, fit-for-purpose kitchens and bathrooms that are no more than 20 years old.

Landlords with properties within the eight designated wards can apply for a licence via: www.blackpool.gov.uk/selectivelicensing

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