Worthing scheme to crack down on poor rental homes

A report on the scheme found that 22% of properties in Worthing were privately rented

Worthing Borough Council is looking to crack down on "substandard" renting conditions with a new licensing scheme.

The proposal will require landlords of privately rented properties in Heene, Central and Selden wards to be licensed, for a fee, through the council.

Labour Councillor Emma Taylor-Beal said the scheme would aim to reduce "substandard and sometimes dangerous" living conditions for renters.

However, Conservative councillor Richard Novak argued that landlords were facing a "net loss position".

A report on the scheme noted 22% of properties in Worthing were privately rented - above the national average of 19%, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

Half of all privately rented properties in Worthing are concentrated in the three wards chosen to run the scheme, the report found.

Ms Taylor-Beal said she hoped landlords would feel proud once licensed under the scheme, as a sign of good quality housing.

She said this would separate them from some landlords who were "absolute rogues, expecting humans to live in conditions most of us wouldn’t want our dogs to live in".

But Mr Nowak said his daughter was a single mother with a mortgage who rented out her property to help her through the cost-of-living crisis.

He said: “She is already in a net loss position, and if she was facing an extra £20 a month, it would push her over the edge."

The scheme will not cover homes of multiple occupation, which are already covered by a separate council licensing scheme.

A public consultation on the scheme is set to take place before it is put into force.

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