HMO and selective licensing in Tower Hamlets Council

Tower Hamlets' borough-wide additional HMO scheme runs from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2029 and covers shared homes occupied by at least three people from two or more households. Its selective scheme covers Weavers, Whitechapel, and Spitalfields and Banglatown under the pre-2022 ward boundaries. That designation was renewed for five years from 1 October 2021, so it is published as running until 30 September 2026; recheck its status if your tenancy reaches the expiry date.^[17]

Whatever Tower Hamlets 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.^[20]

Tower Hamlets' selective scheme uses these former ward boundaries:^[17]

• Weavers
• Whitechapel
• Spitalfields and Banglatown

Tower Hamlets publishes a separate register for each scheme: the additional and selective registers are downloadable files on their scheme pages, and a mandatory HMO register file is also published. Choose the register that matches the occupancy and former-ward location, search every relevant version if your tenancy spans the selective expiry, and ask Housing Licensing about a renewal or an application not yet shown.^[17]

1. Open the register for your scheme. Register downloads (opens in new tab)^[17]
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.^[21]
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.^[24]
4. Report or ask in writing. housinglicensing@towerhamlets.gov.uk. Property-licensing questions and reports go to Tower Hamlets' Housing Licensing team through its published email route.^[19] Ask for a reference number and keep the reply.

Tower Hamlets links different conditions to its mandatory, additional and selective schemes and expects licence holders to manage occupation, safety, antisocial behaviour and waste. Start with the register that matches the property: an HMO licence can cap occupancy and require shared-facility management, while a selective licence for an ordinary rental addresses a different scheme and designated area.^[17]

• 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.^[22]
• 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.

Distinguish the borough-wide additional HMO scheme from the selective designation limited to three former wards. The selective scheme is close to its published expiry, so the alleged offence period and the boundary version both matter. Use the register for the right scheme, then ask Housing Licensing whether a renewal, application or exemption changes the result.^[17]

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. housinglicensing@towerhamlets.gov.uk. Ask Tower Hamlets Council whether an effective application or temporary exemption existed and when it took effect.^[19]
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.^[24]
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.^[25] 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.