Mayor of Greater Manchester launches consultation on “first of its kind” Good Landlord Charter

The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has launched a consultation on a Good Landlord Charter, which is claimed to be “the first of its kind in the UK, bringing together landlords and renters to improve the standards of homes in social housing and the private rented sector”.

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) said the charter “aims to recognise and develop best practice, boost tenant confidence in the quality of good rental properties and provide an ambitious new voluntary standard for landlord excellence, no matter what kind of housing they let”.

The Good Landlord Charter sets out a vision of better renting, meeting the following characteristics:

• Affordable – a tenant should understand how their rent and other charges are set and should not be ripped-off.
• Inclusive – a tenant should not have a worse renting experience because of who they are.
• Private and secure – a tenant should be reasonably free to enjoy their home and make it their own.
• Responsive – a landlord should respond satisfactorily to requests for repairs, correspondence and complaints.
• Safe and decent – a tenant should be able to live free from physical or psychological discomfort in their home.
• Supportive – a tenant should have essential information about renting their home and be helped to access extra support if they need it.
• Well managed – a landlord should be competent or use a competent managing agent.

The plans for the charter follow a similar model to the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter, launched in 2019.

The Good Landlord Charter will leverage public funding and other key devolved powers in a similar way. For example, when public bodies are involved in seeking rented homes – such as for use as temporary accommodation – they could require those bidding to sign up to the Charter, the GMCA said.

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “I’m clear that driving up the quality of rented housing is one of my key priorities. We know your home has a huge impact on so many aspects of life, from your physical and mental health, to your safety and security.  

“This work has, in part, been driven by the devastating conclusions of the inquest that followed Awaab Ishak’s death. A two-year-old boy died because of the quality of his home, and we recognised this had to be the moment when things changed.”

He added: “Today, I’m calling on all renters and landlords in Greater Manchester to get involved in this consultation. I believe this charter will be good for tenants who currently have no way of knowing whether a landlord is decent or not; and good for the many landlords doing the right thing and struggling to differentiate themselves from the disreputable end of the market. 

“The truth is, when we get housing right, we also potentially save billions in public money currently spent dealing with the social crises that come from poor housing situations.” 

The GMCA said it would be possible for tenants living in premises, when the landlord declines to cooperate with local authorities or the Charter, to request a Greater Manchester Property Check.

“With a £3.5 million commitment to support local authorities in delivering this, this will be supported by a more robust, multidisciplinary inspection and enforcement capability to perform the checks and issue notifications where standards remain poor,” it added.

The combined authority pointed out that in Greater Manchester’s private rented sector alone, the Government currently spends more than half a billion pounds annually through the housing element of Universal Credit or Housing Benefit, “with no assurance about the quality of the homes that landlords are providing”. When taking into account social housing as well, that number rises to £1.5 billion.

In 2019, according to Government data, almost 12% of all homes in Greater Manchester had a category one hazard – this means a serious and immediate risk to a person’s health and safety – and more than 17% did not meet the current Decent Homes Standard. In the private rented sector, 15% of homes had a serious health and safety hazard and more than 26% were non-decent. 

The Good Landlord Charter was drafted and developed with a coordinating group, which included Greater Manchester Housing Providers, Greater Manchester Tenants Union, Greater Manchester Student Assembly, Manchester Student Homes, National Residential Landlords Association and Shelter.

Greater Manchester Housing Providers have already committed to signing up to the Charter.

The Good Landlord Charter is out for public consultation until 12pm on 26 February 2024. To respond to the consultation online or download a copy of the consultation document (including in Easy Read format), visit www.gmconsult.org.

Harry Rodd