Upcoming Landlord Outreach
London Borough of Newham has been granted £75,392 as a result of participating in the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Domestic Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Compliance and Enforcement Competition.
What are the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards?
Since April 2020 privately rented homes in England and Wales are required to meet the minimum energy efficiency standard of Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) band E before they can be let, unless a valid exemption is in place.
These requirements are set out in The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 ('the PRS Regulations').
What will the grant fund?
The competition supports local authorities to raise awareness of the PRS Regulations among both landlords and tenants as well as building capacity to tackle the identification of non-compliant landlords. The funding can also be used to support local authorities to create processes to enforce the PRS Regulations.
At Newham, the grant will fund 5 landlord drop-in sessions around the borough. This session will be an opportunity for Newham landlords to speak to our Energy Efficiency Team about what the Minimum Energy Efficiency standards mean for their properties, and ask any specific questions they may have. The team will also be able to provide more details on grants and support currently available.
Who is funding the grant?
The £6.3 million competition is funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and managed by the Midlands Net Zero Hub. The second round of the PRS MEES competition will see a further 26 local authorities receive funding to improve the energy efficiency standards of domestic properties in the private rented sector. This iteration builds on the success of the previous scheme, which saw 59 local authorities supported.
For any questions regarding MEEs or the planned events please contact the Energy Efficiency Team at EPC@newham.gov.uk.