New Tenancy Agreement
About your tenancy agreement
A tenancy agreement is a legal contract between you (the tenant) and your landlord – in this case, the Council. When you became our tenant, you will have received a copy of your Tenancy Agreement, which covers things like:
- Your right to live in the property - It confirms that you can live there as long as your follow the terms.
- What you’re responsible for - This includes paying rent on time, keeping the property clean and safe, and respecting your neighbours.
- What the Council is responsible for - Such as repairs to the structure of the building, heating systems, and ensuring you home is safe and secure.
- Permissions, guests and behaviour - It outlines what’s allowed and what needs permission - like keeping pets, taking in lodgers or making changes to the property.
- How to end your tenancy - It explains how you or the Council can end the agreement, what notices apply and what your must do before your tenancy ends.
Reviewing our tenancy agreement: what’s changing and why
Earlier this year, we carried out a comprehensive review of our Tenancy Agreements. This was an important step to ensure our tenancy terms remain fair, up to date, and aligned both with national legislation, regulations and reflect good practice.
Why we reviewed it
The review was guided by three key goals:
- To reflect recent legislative and regulatory changes - Including updates from the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, Awaab’s Law, and guidance from the Regulator of Social Housing.
- To reflect good practice on tenancy management - Ensuring our policies support safe, respectful communities and effective housing services
- To make the agreement clearer and easier to understand - So tenants can confidently know their rights, responsibilities, and what to expect from the Council as the landlord.
What this means for you now
- We will issue you a letter notifying you that we intend to make changes to your tenancy agreement. This is known as a Preliminary Notice of Variation. You will also be provided with links to where you can access the draft new Tenancy Agreement, and how you can give your thoughts and feedback on the proposed changes.
- You will not see any immediate changes to your tenancy agreement.
- Your current rights and responsibilities remain the same throughout the review period.
- We aim to make agreements easier to understand and fair for everyone.
What happens after the consultation period
- Your rights as a tenant will remain the same.
- We will review all feedback and comments received by tenants from the consultation, and make any necessary amendments.
- We will issue a Notice of Variation to you when we have finalised any changes. You will receive this with at least 4 weeks notice before the new terms and conditions of the tenancy agreement come into effect.
- You will be notified of the date the new tenancy agreement is effective from.
- You will receive a paper copy of the new tenancy agreement.
Updated: 11th September 2025