NRLA defeats Telford and Wrekin Council licensing plans

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has defeated plans by Telford and Wrekin Council to introduce an additional licensing scheme for landlords.

The scheme, which was originally under consultation in late 2025, aimed to extend licensing requirements to shared houses with three or four occupants.

Had it been allowed to proceed, landlords of smaller HMOs would have been forced to pay a licensing fee of more than £1,500 per property.

The scheme would also have created duplication for landlords as the West Midlands becomes the first region required to join the new national landlord database from 15th December 2026.

The NRLA contacted the council to raise concerns; after failing to receive a response, it instructed lawyers to launch a legal challenge.

The complaint stated, among other points, that the consultation was so unfair as to be unlawful.

This extended to the NRLA claiming the council had failed to publicise the designation properly, provide key consultation documents and answer questions about the legal basis for this work.

The council first argued against this position, then proposed simply to conduct the steps it had missed. However, on 11th September 2026 it revoked the designation in its entirety, effective from 15th September 2026.

The challenge was led by the NRLA’s policy team, with senior policy officer Samantha Watkin working with the association’s legal advisers to raise the concerns with the council.

“This is a major win for landlords, which sends a message to councils across the country: if you do not exercise your powers within the limits of the law, you will be challenged,” said Ben Beadle, CEO at the NRLA.

“Good regulation should protect tenants while supporting responsible landlords.

“At a time when a new national landlord database is being introduced, councils should also think very carefully before imposing additional local schemes that duplicate information and costs without demonstrating clear benefits.”