Southend-on-Sea City Council's selective licensing scheme covering parts of the Chalkwell, Kursaal, Milton, and Victoria wards expires on 30 November 2026. No successor scheme or renewal consultation has been announced. Landlords in the designated area hold licences that will lapse on that date unless a new designation is made.
Scheme background. Southend-on-Sea City Council designated its selective licensing scheme on 18 March 2021; it came into force on 1 December 2021 and is formally due to expire on 30 November 2026. The scheme covers privately rented properties (excluding mandatory HMOs) in nine neighbourhoods within the Milton, Kursaal, Victoria, and Chalkwell wards, targeted on the basis of persistent anti-social behaviour, poor housing conditions, and above-average crime rates. The current licence fee is ?830 per property, payable in two parts (Part A: ?208 on application; Part B: ?622 on grant).
Renewal position. Kamma's licensing intelligence platform confirms as of mid-2026 that Southend-on-Sea City Council is not currently consulting on or planning to introduce any new licensing measures. This means that, on current information, selective licensing obligations in the designated wards will cease automatically when the scheme expires. Unlike HMO mandatory licensing, selective licensing has no statutory continuity beyond the five-year designation period ? when the designation ends, the requirement to hold a licence ends with it.
Compliance implications. Landlords should not assume either continuity or discontinuation without further formal council communication. If a new designation is made before 30 November 2026, a three-month notice period must elapse before it comes into force, meaning a successor scheme could not legally commence before 1 March 2027 at the earliest if designated today. The council's enforcement policy makes clear it will pursue unlicensed properties vigorously; until 30 November 2026 all existing licence conditions remain fully enforceable.
What to watch. Monitor the council's democracy portal at southend.moderngov.co.uk for cabinet reports or housing committee agenda items relating to a renewal consultation. Given the new General Approval in force since December 2024 ? which removed the requirement for Secretary of State approval of schemes of any size ? a renewal or expanded scheme is procedurally straightforward for the council to pursue and would only require a 10-week public consultation before designation.
Action required
Landlords in the four designated wards should monitor southend.gov.uk for any consultation on a successor scheme. No new applications for the current scheme will have effect beyond 30 November 2026. Check whether a new designation is made before that date; if not, selective licensing obligations in these wards cease automatically on scheme expiry.
Effective
2026-11-30
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