HMO and selective licensing in Kensington and Chelsea Council

Kensington and Chelsea's borough-wide additional HMO designation was made on 20 October 2022, came into force on 1 June 2023 and ceases on 31 May 2028. It brings HMOs occupied by at least three people from two or more households into licensing when they are not already mandatory HMOs, so in this borough every licensing question starts from who shares the home. The council's current pages identify no selective licensing designation, which means a single-household flat needs no local licence.^[11]

Whatever Kensington and Chelsea designates locally, a large HMO shared by at least five people from more than one household needs a mandatory licence anywhere in England. The London licensing guide sets out the national tests that sit behind every local scheme.^[15]

The council publishes a Public HMO Register page with a searchable database and a downloadable register report, and notes that applications currently being processed will not appear. Search the complete address and save the result, then use the private-sector housing form to ask whether an additional or mandatory HMO application is pending for the property.^[13]

1. Open the official register. Public HMO Register (opens in new tab)^[13]
2. Search the exact address. Save a dated screenshot or download of the result. Councils must keep a register of licences, temporary exemption notices and management orders and make it available for inspection.^[16]
3. Ask about applications and exemptions. A missing entry is a reason to investigate, not proof of an offence, so ask whether a licence, application or exemption covered the dates you rented there.^[19]
4. Report or ask in writing. Report an unlicensed shared property (opens in new tab). The borough's private-sector housing form includes a route for reporting an unlicensed shared property.^[14] Ask for a reference number and keep the reply.

Kensington and Chelsea publishes licence conditions and HMO standards covering occupancy, amenities, fire precautions, safety certificates, waste and property management. Since the local designation is specifically additional HMO licensing, evidence about shared kitchens, bathrooms, households and sleeping rooms is particularly relevant. Use the private-sector housing form for physical breaches even where a register entry exists.^[11]

• National conditions are the floor. Every licence carries the prescribed conditions on gas, electrics, alarms, tenancy terms and waste, and can last up to five years; the London licensing guide lists them in full.^[17]
• Compare the licence with reality. The register entry or licence may identify the manager, the permitted occupancy and property-specific conditions. Check those details against how the home is actually occupied and managed.
• Keep separate evidence of hazards. A licence does not establish continuing compliance. Report disrepair or an immediate safety risk separately, and keep photographs, messages and certificates.

The local extension is additional licensing, not a selective scheme. Establish that at least three occupiers formed more than one household and shared facilities, then check whether the property was already within mandatory licensing. Report through the council's unlicensed shared-property category and ask for the licence or application status across your tenancy dates.^[11][13]

1. Confirm the scheme and dates. Match the address, occupancy and rental period to the designation in force at the time.
2. Ask the council in writing. Report an unlicensed shared property (opens in new tab). Ask the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea whether an effective application or temporary exemption existed and when it took effect.^[14]
3. Check the legal position. An application, an exemption, a reasonable excuse or the identity of the person legally responsible (the "person managing or controlling" the property) can all affect whether an offence is proved.^[19]
4. Preserve the evidence. Keep the tenancy, rent payments, proof of occupation, dated searches and council correspondence.

For a licensing offence committed on or after the 1 May 2026 rule change, a tenant can ask the First-tier Tribunal for up to two years' rent, and normally has two years from the offence to apply. The tenant must prove the offence beyond reasonable doubt, and the tribunal decides any award from the statutory factors and evidence; recovery is never automatic.^[20] Older offence periods may be governed by earlier limits. Free housing advice is available from Shelter and Citizens Advice, and local law centres can help with tribunal cases.