Selective licensing in Southwark

What the designation says

Southwark operates selective licensing through a series of separate ward designations rather than a single borough-wide scheme, so whether a property needs a licence depends on which ward it sits in and which designation covers it. Designation 3 covers North Walworth, Nunhead and Queen's Road, Old Kent Road and Peckham. Designation 4 covers Camberwell Green, Chaucer, Dulwich Hill, Dulwich Wood, London Bridge and West Bermondsey, Peckham Rye, Rotherhithe, Rye Lane, South Bermondsey and Surrey Docks. Earlier designations were made in October 2021 and December 2022. Each designation runs for five years from its own start date, so they expire at different times. Selective licensing applies to privately rented homes that are not already caught by mandatory or additional HMO licensing, which means an ordinary flat or a house let to a single household. The council splits the fee into two payments: an application charge covering processing, then a further charge before the licence is issued, covering enforcement. Because the designations differ, a landlord should check their specific address against the council's published lists rather than assume a borough-wide position. Letting without a required licence is a criminal offence carrying a civil penalty of up to £30,000 or prosecution, and exposes the landlord to a rent repayment order.

What this means for a landlord

A licence must be in place before the property is let, not applied for afterwards. Operating unlicensed in a designated area is a criminal offence: a civil penalty of up to £30,000 per offence, a rent repayment order of up to twelve months' rent, and a section 21 notice that cannot be served while the property is unlicensed. Mandatory HMO licensing applies separately and everywhere, wherever a property is let to five or more people forming two or more households.

Southwark's own licensing page →