HMO licensing in Wigan Council

Whether a rented home in Wigan needs a licence depends on how many people share it.

• Mandatory HMO licensing covers homes rented to 5 or more people who form more than one household and share a kitchen, bathroom or toilet, anywhere in the borough.^[37]
• Additional HMO licensing for smaller HMOs is not in force in Wigan.
• Selective licensing of homes let to a single household is not in force anywhere in the borough.

Separately, since 31 August 2025 a borough-wide planning rule (an Article 4 direction) has meant that turning a family house into an HMO of any size needs planning permission. That is a planning control, not a licence.^[28]

Subject to statutory exemptions, a large HMO shared by at least five people from more than one household needs a mandatory licence anywhere in England. The property licensing guide sets out the national tests that sit behind every local scheme.^[37]

Wigan Council publishes its register of licensed HMOs as a PDF list on its website. Each entry gives the address, when the licence started and the most people allowed to live there; the licence holder's name is not published. If an address is not on the list, ask the council's HMO licensing team to confirm the position in writing.^[32]

1. Download Wigan's HMO licence register and search it for the address. Wigan HMO licence register (PDF) (opens in new tab)^[32]
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.^[39]
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.^[42]
4. Report or ask in writing. Email the HMO licensing team. Use the council's HMO concern form (opens in new tab), or email hmo@wigan.gov.uk.^[36] Ask for a reference number and keep the reply.

Wigan publishes its own HMO standards and mandatory licence conditions, both dated June 2025. Among other things, the landlord must:

• give each bedroom at least the minimum size: 6.51 square metres for one person aged over 10, 10.22 square metres for two, and never use a room under 4.64 square metres as a bedroom
• provide enough kitchens, bathrooms and toilets for the number of people sharing
• fit a fire alarm and fire doors suited to the size of the house, including a fire door to every kitchen
• keep the house in good repair and the shared areas safe and clean^[34]

• 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 property licensing guide lists them in full.^[40]
• 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.

Start with who lives there. A Wigan home shared by fewer than 5 people, or let to one family, needs no property licence: the council runs no additional or selective scheme. If 5 or more people from different households share it, check the council's register, which listed 208 licensed HMOs when last updated in September 2026.^[28]

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. Email the HMO licensing team. Ask Wigan Council whether an effective application or temporary exemption existed and when it took effect.^[36]
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.^[42]
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.^[43] 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.