Local authorities in England and Wales can bid for financial support through the Private Rental Sector MEES Compliance and Enforcement Competition.
The competition makes over £2 million of funding available. Each local authority can bid for up to £100,000 of revenue funding to help build their capacity and capability to enforce the MEES Regulations in the domestic sector in their region. This financial assistance will help drive upgrades in the worst-performing private rented homes.
The competition will:
•support local authorities with the introduction of a formulated approach for enforcing requirements under The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015
•assist local authorities with clear financial needs to build compliance and enforcement capacity and capability
•reduce fuel poverty and the carbon emissions produced by the housing (and commercial) sector
The Midlands Energy Hub is managing this scheme on behalf of BEIS.
Enforcement of the MEES Regulations is not something that the Council has yet fully engaged with, a trend that is replicated across the country. The proposal is to bid for the full £100,000 funding towards bringing in some temporary staff to commence a compliance and enforcement programme aimed at improving compliance with the MEES regulations across the district. Data suggests that 458 rented properties in the District fail to meet the minimum standard. The project will be managed through the Private Sector Housing team with the aim that as many sub-standard properties are improved as possible along with increased publicity aimed at ensuring greater awareness. The funding will cover the cost of employing two temporary or agency members of staff and include an allowance for legal costs where cases of non-compliance with enforcement need to be followed up.
Overall the project will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the District, improve poor housing conditions and alleviate fuel poverty whilst ensuring the council complies with its enforcement obligations in respect of the regulations.