Tenancy Conditions Handbook

For Introductory and Secure Tenants

1. About your Tenancy Agreement

Introduction

These are the conditions of your tenancy. They have been set out so that both you (the tenant) and us (your landlord, the London Borough of Redbridge) are clear about our respective rights and responsibilities to each other.

The London Borough of Redbridge (The Council) is your landlord. It is important that you fully understand these conditions because they explain what you can and cannot do in your property. It is important that you keep to these conditions as you may lose your home if you break them.

This agreement provides you with a summary of the grounds for possession. These grounds are set out in detail in schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1985, as amended by the Housing Act 1996. A copy of the detailed grounds for possession is available on request.

Advice and guidance

Some parts of this agreement are for advice and guidance and are in bold.

Secure tenancies

1.1 This agreement only makes you a secure tenant if:

you are an existing secure tenant of London Borough of Redbridge; or
you are a secure tenant of another local authority; or
you are an assured tenant with a housing association

1.2 It means you keep your home as long as you want it unless there is a legal reason to evict you (called a “ground for possession” in the Housing Act 1985 as amended by the Housing Act 1996) and a Court agrees with the Council’s request to evict you or to move you to another home. The Council would take possession of the property for one of two main reasons:

a) because of your own action or the action of someone living with you or visiting you; or

You must have broken a rule in this agreement, for example non-payment of rent, or given false information in your housing application. In these cases we will not offer you another home.

b) because special circumstances mean the Council must move you out

This could be either temporary or permanent. These circumstances are described in sections 3.9 and 6.11 of this agreement. You will be offered a suitable alternative home and you will normally get compensation or help with moving costs (or both) depending on your circumstances.

1.3 As a secure tenant the Council cannot terminate your tenancy without first serving Notice on you and/or obtaining an order from the Court. Any Notice served on you must give at least four weeks’ notice before proceedings can be taken against you.

The Council does have to prove a ground of possession when evicting a secure tenant. Eviction action is likely to be taken against you for breach of your tenancy, (such as nuisance or rent arrears) but there may be other circumstances in which the Council may wish to gain possession of the property. A ‘Notice of Seeking Possession’ must contain information as to why eviction action is being taken against you.

Introductory tenancies

If this is your first tenancy with the London Borough of Redbridge you will automatically be an introductory tenant for the first year. Introductory tenancies differ from secure tenancies, for example in the way that we can repossess the property and you will not have the ‘Right to Buy’ (see section 8.1). Only secure tenants have the Right to Buy.

1.4 As an introductory tenant you are not yet a secure tenant of the Council. In particular you will not be entitled to take in lodgers, sub-let the property, make improvements, or exchange the property.

Under certain circumstances the Council may allow you to take in a lodger, make improvements or exchange the property. Contact us for more information.

1.5 The Council cannot terminate your tenancy without first serving a ‘Notice of Proceedings for Possession’ on you and obtaining an order from the Court. Any Notice served on you must give at least four weeks’ notice before proceedings can be taken against you.

The Council does not have to prove a ground for possession when evicting an introductory tenant. Eviction action is likely to be taken against you for breach of your tenancy conditions, (such as nuisance or arrears of rent) but there may be other circumstances in which the Council may wish to gain possession of the property.

2. Rent

2.1 You must pay your rent on time.

Your rent may include a service charge and an amenity charge and payment is due on the Monday of each week. If you prefer to pay fortnightly or monthly, then you must pay in advance.

You are responsible for paying for any gas, electricity or water used in the property and Council Tax.

If you are entitled to Housing Benefit, it is your responsibility to ensure payments are made to your rent account.

2.2 If you do not pay your rent when it is due, the Council can go to court to get legal permission to evict you from the property.

If you have any difficulty paying your rent you should contact us immediately. Help and
advice is also available through our partnership organisations such as Citizens Advice Bureau and welfare benefit agencies.

2.3 If you are joint tenants you are each responsible for all the rent and for any rent arrears.

The Council can recover all rent arrears owed for the property from any individual joint tenant.
Should one joint tenant leave, the remaining tenant, or tenants, are responsible for any rent that may still be owed.

2.4 The rent may be increased or decreased from time to time. You will be told in writing at least four weeks before any rent change.

We will usually consult you about increases or decreases in rent and the amount of rent you pay depends on the amenities in the property, its size, type and location.

2.5 If you vacate, abandon, or are evicted from your property, you will still be liable, and therefore pursued, for any rent arrears.

As a former tenant of the Council, you, or any joint tenant, are liable for rent arrears accrued as a result of non-payment of rent. If you fail to clear
the arrears, or make an arrangement with us to do so, your debt will be passed to a debt collection agency or court bailiff.

3. Repairs and maintenance

Your rights

3.1 You have the right to have repairs done within a reasonable time. In some cases you have a legal ‘Right to Repair’.

Sometimes some repairs you ask for will be added to a future major work programme, consequently specific timescales to do this work may vary.

You may be able to get compensation if certain repairs are not done within a reasonable time. Contact us for more information.

Your responsibilities

3.2 You must:

report any faults or damage to the property to us immediately
keep the property clean, in good condition and use the fixtures responsibly
pay for repair, replacement and/or reinstatement if damage is caused deliberately or by your own neglect (for example wall and floor tiling, smashed windows or broken doors). The costs will be charged in addition to your rent. This also includes the cost of special cleaning that
is needed because you have allowed the property to become unreasonably dirty or infested
do small repairs which includes things such as, unblocking sinks or replacing tap washers or internal door handles, wall and floor tiling; and
allow staff, contractors or agents into the property to inspect and carry out repairs, improvements and annual gas safety checks. You must move furniture, fittings, carpets and anything else you own if it will make it easier to do the repair

3.3 You must not:

remove walls or take out any other part of the property, make other alterations, put up structures such as sheds, satellite dishes, TV aerials, extensions, loft conversions, garages or pigeon lofts anywhere without getting written permission from us

If in doubt please ask us.

3.4 You are responsible for decorating inside the property.

If the property is damaged by a third party the Council will not be responsible for putting this right. We strongly advise all residents to take out their own contents insurance. You can talk to us about this.

3.5 You are responsible for repairing and maintaining your own equipment such as cookers or washing machines.

See 6.4 for more information.

3.6 You are responsible for keeping in good repair any fences, gates, walls or other boundaries to the property.

Our responsibilities

3.7 We will repair:

the structure and exterior of the building
- this includes roofs, walls, floors, ceilings, window frames, external doors, drains, gutters and outside pipes
kitchen and bathroom fixtures - these include basins, sinks, toilets and baths
electrical wiring, gas and water pipes
heating equipment and water heating equipment; and
communal areas around your home - this includes stairs, lifts, landings, lighting, entrance halls, pathways, shared gardens, parking areas, service roads, fencing, gates and rubbish chutes

3.8 We will:

paint the outside of your home at regular intervals
do repairs in a reasonable time

When you request a repair we will tell you when the work will be done by (this depends on how urgent it is).

clear up after a repair; and

We will leave the decoration as close as possible to how it was before the work was done.

give you or send you written confirmation of your request for a repair

Please keep this confirmation in case you want to make an enquiry later.

3.9 There are special circumstances when the Council has the legal right to take possession of the property because work needs to be done on it. They are:

if the property needs to be empty for major building repair, for complete redevelopment or because it has to be demolished you will be offered a suitable alternative property. You will receive compensation and help with moving costs depending on your circumstances. Your move could be permanent or temporary; and
if you agree to a temporary move we have the right to take possession of your
temporary property when the work on your original property is finished

3.10 We will give you reasonable notice if we intend to visit to inspect or repair the property and we reserve the right to force entry under the following circumstances:

to comply with our statutory duties and obligations, for example, to check the safety of gas appliances and installations and any other services; and
to inspect or rectify a situation where there is an emergency or a health and safety issue

Where the need for forced entry has arisen we reserve the right to recharge you for the cost of gaining entry to the property, including any legal costs.

Never let anyone in without seeing some official identification. If you are in doubt contact us.

If you do not let us in you could be putting yourselves and your neighbours at risk.

4. Responsibilities to your community

Your responsibilities

4.1 You are responsible for the behaviour of every person and animal living in or visiting the property. You are responsible for them in the property, on surrounding land, in communal areas including stairs, lifts, landings, entrance halls, paved areas, shared gardens, parking areas and in the neighbourhood around the property.

4.2 You and they must not cause a nuisance, annoyance or disturbance to any other person. This includes:

playing loud music
noise from televisions and radios
loud arguments and door slamming
dogs barking and fouling
feeding and attracting birds or animals;
offensive drunkenness
rubbish dumping in communal areas, landings and balconies, or leaving rubbish outside your home
throwing things off balconies or out of windows
failing to control children who are causing a nuisance or damage to property including graffiti
spitting or urinating anywhere in the communal areas of a building or estate; or
doing anything that interferes with the peace or comfort of other people

4.3 You and they must not cause alarm, harassment or distress to any other person. This includes:

racist language or behaviour
any type of abusive behaviour, verbal or otherwise
using or threatening to use violence
damaging or threatening to damage another person’s property or possessions; and
writing threatening, abusive or insulting graffiti

You will have to pay for any damage caused or for the removal of graffiti. The costs will be charged in addition to your rent.

If you, or a member of your household, or visitor to your home break any of your conditions of tenancy, or cause a nuisance or annoyance to other people, then legal action can be taken against you. For example:

we can ask a court for an anti-social behaviour injunction. Injunctions are orders to stop behaviour that causes nuisance or annoyance and if you break them you can be fined or imprisoned; and
we can also ask a court to give us possession of the property and evict you and everyone who lives with you

4.4 You must not perpetrate or inflict domestic violence on your partner or member of your household.

Domestic violence can be physical, psychological, sexual, emotional, verbal or financial and can be inflicted directly or indirectly.

4.5 You and any person visiting your property must not:

use the property or communal area for any illegal or immoral activitiy such as selling drugs or allow the property to be used for storing banned substances or stolen goods
damage or deface Council property
interfere with any security and safety equipment; or
You should not jam doors open and you should not let strangers in without identification
break any of the Council’s byelaws

You can ask to see the byelaws at a public library.

4.6 If you live in a flat on an estate you have the right of entry to the block in which your flat is situated and to any communal areas for lawful purposes. You must not enter any other block unless you have a lawful reason to do so.

4.7 You must not keep a dog or cat at the property without getting written permission from us. This does not apply if you need a guide dog, hearing dog or disability assistance dog.

Contact us for advice on this.

4.8 If you have written permission from us to keep a dog you must:

keep it under proper control
keep it on a lead when on the estate or the surrounding area to the property
not allow the dog to frighten or annoy other people; and
clear up any mess (such as fouling) caused by your dog on the estate or the surrounding area to the property

4.9 You must not keep any animal that we consider to be dangerous or could cause a health hazard.

Contact us before getting any pets.

4.10 You must keep all communal areas clean, tidy and clear of obstruction.

For example do not leave bikes, pushchairs, plant pots, rubbish bags or other obstacles in
communal areas. Do not put carpet in communal areas.

4.11 You must not:

hang washing, mats or rugs from windows, balconies or communal landings or stairwells
store personal items in loft spaces other than those where access is gained from within the property
advertise or run a business from the property unless you have written permission from us
park a vehicle anywhere on the estate or on the property except on a driveway or area intended for parking
park a vehicle on greens or grass verges. If there are allocated parking spaces in force you must not park a vehicle other than in the space allocated to the property
park any caravan or motor home or lorry on the estate or the area around the property or on any communal parking area without getting written permission from us
park, or allow your visitors to park, anywhere that would obstruct emergency services
carry out major car repairs on the land or road around the property; and
park an untaxed or unroadworthy vehicle, or one which may not be legally driven on
the highway, the land or the road around the property

This applies to all vehicles even those with Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN).

4.12 You must keep your garden and balcony tidy, for example by cutting the lawn and trimming the hedges. If the garden is overgrown and you are unable to clear it yourself, we can clear it and charge you for the work.

We might be able to help you if you are elderly or disabled – contact us for more information.

4.13 You must take reasonable action to prevent fire, flooding, frost, or other damage to the property. You must not use or store paraffin, petrol or other inflammable gases, liquids or dangerous substances in the property. You may only keep bottled gas and use it according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Our responsibilities

4.14 If you report nuisance or harassment to us we must give you help and advice. We will investigate your complaint and decide what action to take.

5. Consultation and information

Your rights

5.1 You have the right:

to see information we have about you, your partner or your family; and

You can get copies of the information but you may have to pay. Contact us for information about how to do this. In certain circumstances you will not be able to see everything – for example details about other people.

to start or join a local residents’ group

Contact us for information about groups in your area or about how to start one.

Our responsibilities

5.2 We will:

ask your views about any housing plans if they substantially affect you

For example we will consult you about modernisation or improvement work that is planned for your home or estate. We will inform you or your residents’ group about local housing issues.

ask your views about any planned changes to the Tenancy Agreement. You will be told in writing if these changes are to go ahead;
send you regular information, which describes our work and performance; and
deal with your complaints efficiently and effectively

Contact us if you need to make a complaint.

Your rights

6.1 You have the right to take in lodgers but you must get written permission from us.

This must not result in you overcrowding the property. A lodger is someone who lives in the property but doesn’t have exclusive rights to any one part of it and who gets some sort of service from you such as cooking or cleaning. This might affect any benefits you are entitled to.

6.2 You have the right to sub-let part of the property, but you must get written permission from us.

Sub-letting means that someone pays you rent to have exclusive rights to part of the property. They will usually do their own cooking and cleaning. You must not sub-let the whole of the property and you may lose the property if you do so. You may also be breaking the law and we will take all possible action against people who sub-let.

6.3 You have the right, provided you have got written permission from us, to put in your own improvements such as central heating, a shower or a gas fire. Contact us if you want to get permission. We will not refuse permission unless there is a good reason. However it is your responsibility to get any necessary planning permission, building regulation approval and other necessary consents. You should contact the appropriate department within the Council with any enquiries about such matters.

You can sometimes get compensation when you leave the property for some improvements you have carried out yourself. Contact us for more information.

6.4 If you make an improvement you will be responsible for repairing and maintaining it. You can ask us to repair and maintain it for you and if we agree we may charge you for the cost of doing this.

Your responsibilities

6.5 You must tell us, in writing, of any changes to the number of people living with you in the property.

6.6 If you make an improvement or alteration to the property without first getting our written
agreement we may tell you to return the property to how it was before. If you don’t, we may do the work and make you pay for it even after you have left the property.

6.7 Any improvement, alteration, repair or decoration that you do must be carried out to a standard which is acceptable to us.

We will be able to advise you as to standards considered acceptable.

6.8 Laminate or other wooden flooring may only be installed in ground floor properties or individual houses.

If you install laminate flooring and it causes a disturbance to your neighbours, you will be asked to remove it. If you have a specific medical condition that requires you to have laminate flooring then you need to contact us to discuss this.

6.9 You must:

use the property as your only or principal home
tell us if you will be away from the property for more than a month; and
tell us, in writing with reasons, if you intend to be away from the property for more than three months. You run the risk of losing the property if you do not live in it and have not given us a satisfactory reason why you do not live there

6.10 You must not:

overcrowd the property; or

We can advise you of the maximum number allowed. If you are expecting a baby or the number of people living in the property changes, and exceeds this number, then you may be entitled to larger accommodation. Contact us if your circumstances change.

keep mopeds or motorbikes inside the property or inside any council owned building (excluding garages) or communal area

Our responsibilities

6.11 There are circumstances when the Council has the legal right to take possession of the property. One of these is that we can move you if the property has special adaptations for a disabled or elderly person who no longer lives there. But we only do this in very exceptional cases and only if the property is needed by another elderly or disabled person who has nowhere suitable to live. Even if this does happen you will be offered another suitable property before you have to move out.

7. Moving home

Your rights

7.1 You have the right to apply to move to another Council property.

You will have to go on a waiting list. An offer of a new property depends on the urgency of your housing need, how long you have been waiting and what accommodation is available. Certain conditions must be met before you can move and these are set out in Section 7.4.

7.2 You have the right to see our Allocations Policy (the Council’s rules for deciding who gets offered housing).

We can give you a summary of these rules. Contact the Council’s Housing Advice Centre for more information about this.

7.3 You have the right to swap the property (called a ‘mutual exchange’) with another tenant of the Council, a registered provider or another council provided they have their landlord’s agreement. You must get the Council’s agreement in writing before such exchanges can take place.

We can only refuse permission on certain grounds, for example:

one of the properties would be overcrowded – we can tell you the maximum number of people allowed
the Council is taking legal action to get possession of the home of any of the tenants involved
the exchange would mean that a property adapted for elderly or disabled people would have no-one living there who needed the adaptation; and
one of the homes would be too large for the new tenants

Contact us for further details.

Your responsibilities

7.4 There are certain conditions that you must meet before the exchange and or transfer can go ahead. These include:

you must not owe any rent (unless you have been keeping to a rent arrears repayment agreement for a set time)
the property and/or garden must be in good condition; and
if you have made improvements or alterations without our written permission you may have to return the property to how it was before

7.5 If you do exchange without our written agreement we may take legal action to evict you and/or the people you have exchanged with. You may not be allowed to return to the original property and it may affect your right to be offered alternative housing.

It is illegal to pay someone to exchange homes with you.

8. Ending your tenancy

Your rights

8.1 You have the right, under certain circumstances, to buy the property provided you have been a tenant of the London Borough of Redbridge or any other public sector landlord (e.g. other council or registered provider) or lived in armed forces accommodation. Among other requirements you must have lived in this sort of housing for a total of five years or more and it does not have to have been a continuous five-year period.

Introductory tenants do not have the ‘Right to Buy’ but any time spent as an introductory tenant will count towards the qualifying period. Contact us for more information.

Your responsibilities

8.2 You must:

tell us in writing at least four weeks before you want to leave the property

You will need to complete a termination of tenancy form, which you can get from your housing office, and return it to the address shown on the form. If you leave without giving four weeks’ notice we can still charge you rent until we legally take the property back.

allow us to inspect the property and carry out minor repairs during this notice period. This four week notice period must end on a Monday and you must return your keys to the housing office no later than the day you leave. Failure to return keys by 12 noon on the date of vacation will mean you are liable for a further week’s rent
leave the property, the fixtures and any furnishings we have provided in good condition when you go; and

Do not leave any of your belongings behind - we may dispose of them, and recharge you.

pay for repair, replacement and/or reinstatement if damage has been caused deliberately or by your own neglect. You will not have to pay for normal wear and tear

8.3 You must not:

leave anybody else living in the property when you move out

You cannot pass on your tenancy to anyone else except in very limited circumstances. Contact us for further details.

You may not be entitled to another Council property in the future if:

you have been evicted
you still owe rent; and
you left the property in poor condition and have not paid for repair or replacement

8.4 If you are joint tenants either of you can end the tenancy by giving us four weeks’ notice. We will decide if the renaming joint tenant(s) can stay in the property.

Your tenancy when you die

8.5 In certain circumstances the tenancy of the property can pass automatically to a family member/relative when you die. This is called ‘succession’. The legal description of how this can happen is set out in the Housing Act 1985. However, an important rule laid down in the Act is that tenants are only entitled to one automatic succession.

Therefore if you are already a tenant by succession, then on your death, there cannot be another succession. However, in these circumstances, we will consider the housing needs of family members/relatives who resided with you for at least 12 months prior to your death and if appropriate provide housing assistance (in accordance with the Council’s Policy). If a new tenancy is awarded it will not be a succession but will be a new discretionary tenancy to a suitably sized property (see succession notes on the following page).

Succession notes

Here is a summary of the rules governing succession. Further details can be obtained from your housing office.

if you are a joint tenant, the tenancy will pass to the other joint tenant(s) on your death
if you are married and your husband, wife, or civil partner is not a joint tenant, then the property will pass automatically to them.
Your partner may also succeed the tenancy so long as they have lived with you for at least 12 months prior to your death
if you are not married or your partner, husband, wife or civil partner does not want to live in the property, then succession can take place to a member of your family who has lived with you continuously for the previous 12 months. A “member of your family” includes a parent, child, sibling or grandchild etc. If there is more than one “member of your family” who wants to, and is entitled to, succeed then they can agree between themselves who should succeed. If they cannot agree then the Council will decide, and
the husband, wife, civil partner or member of your family who succeeds will be a secure tenant (unless the previous tenant was an Introductory Tenant). They can keep the property as long as they want it. They will be bound by the same Tenancy Agreement that you had.

8.6 If a family member succeeds the tenancy and the property is bigger than they need, we have the legal right to move them out. However, we will offer them a suitable alternative accommodation. We will not ask your husband, wife or civil partner to move out if the property is bigger than they need.

Passing your tenancy to someone else

8.7 If you are a secure tenant you have the right to pass your tenancy to someone else, this is called an ‘Assignment’ and there are three ways this can be done.

Assignment by mutual exchange

You can exchange your property with someone else provided you get written permission from both landlords. The person you wish to exchange with must also be a secure tenant or an assured tenant of a registered provider.

Assignment by court order

Is where a judge will order the transfer of a tenancy from one party to another.

Assignment to a potential successor

Your tenancy can be assigned to someone who is a potential successor (see 8.5).

There are rules governing assignments and we cannot refuse permission unless there is a valid reason. Contact us for more information.

9. Notices

9.1 The following information is intended to comply with the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, Section
48. If you need to serve a legal notice on us as set out in Section 48 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 you should send it to London Borough of Redbridge, Lynton House, 255-259 High Road, Ilford IG1 1NY

9.2 The following information is in accordance with Section 196 of the Law of Property Act 1925 which shall apply in respect of this agreement.

A notice given in connection with this agreement by the Council is properly served in any of the following ways:

by handing it to you personally
by leaving it for you at the property
by affixing it to the property
leaving it for you at your last known place of abode; and
by sending it by recorded delivery to the property or your last known place of abode

9.3 With the exception of changes to your rent and other charges this agreement can only be changed if we:

serve a Notice of Variation on you and the provisions of Section 103 of the Housing Act 1985 apply (this variation will not be regarded as creating a new tenancy); or
the law has changed and it allows us to change this agreement

10. Addresses for Letters

10.1 For routine matters and those referred to in this agreement please contact the housing office. The address is:

Orchard Housing Office
152 Broadmead Road
Woodford Green
Essex
IG8 0AG

Telephone: 020 8518 2400
Email: housing.enquiries@redbridge.gov.uk

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