A landlord group has issued a pre-action legal notice challenging Great Yarmouth Borough Council’s selective licensing scheme, which is scheduled to commence on 1 April 2025.
The Eastern Landlords Association (ELA) sent the letter before claim on 11 February, the final procedural step before filing for judicial review. The scheme, approved in December, will require licences for approximately 5,000 privately rented properties across Nelson, Central and Northgate, Southtown and Cobholm wards, and parts of North Ward.
Legal grounds for challenge
The pre-action notice argues the council failed to properly assess alternatives to licensing and used outdated modelling when evaluating housing conditions in the designated areas. According to the ELA, the authority has not clearly demonstrated how the licensing designation would reduce deprivation or improve housing standards when considered alongside other available measures.
The association has requested the scheme be withdrawn or delayed pending resolution of the dispute. It has also sought access to detailed inspection data, financial modelling underlying the licence fee structure, and analysis of outcomes from previous licensing in Nelson Ward.
Political and council responses
Rupert Lowe, Independent MP for the constituency, has supported the ELA’s position. In a Facebook statement, he said landlords would “simply sell their houses, driving up rent and even opening the door to HMOs being bought up. The council’s scheme is poorly thought out. It won’t work, and it won’t deliver for tenants or landlords.”
A council spokesperson responded: “Selective licensing schemes already operate successfully across wide parts of the country, and no one should lose sight of the fact that the only purpose of introducing a scheme is to improve the quality of housing for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities.”
The spokesperson added: “Good landlords have nothing to fear from a scheme, wherever they operate, and the council is confident its proposal meets all the necessary legal requirements for its introduction.”
Market implications
The legal challenge introduces uncertainty for landlords operating in the affected wards, with the 1 April implementation date approaching. If the scheme proceeds as planned, property owners will need to obtain licences to continue letting in the designated areas. Should the judicial review proceed, it could delay or modify the scheme’s rollout, affecting compliance timelines for the 5,000 properties covered by the designation.