Selective licensing · Southend-on-Sea City Council
Proposed further selective licensing scheme from 2027 (2026 consultation; council document title: Selective Licensing Scheme Proposal 2026)
- Status
- Proposed
- Applies to
- Proposed: privately rented homes in parts of Milton, Kursaal, Victoria and Chalkwell wards, about 5,685 rented homes, unless they're exempt. It wouldn't take in the whole of any of these wards: it covers most of Milton and Kursaal and only small parts of Victoria and Chalkwell. That's a wider area than the scheme ending on 30 November 2026. HMOs that need a mandatory licence wouldn't also need a selective licence. The boundary isn't final. The map on the council's consultation page decides which homes are in, so check that map: the street list runs wider than the map, and the council's address lookup shows only the older area. The consultation is open until 31 December 2026. If agreed, the council is working towards a possible start on 1 April 2027, and it says there will be a gap after the current scheme ends. The council hasn't published a fee yet.
Our records last verified 1 November 2026 · council designation page
Area covered
The scheme’s area lies within these wards: Chalkwell, Kursaal, Milton, Victoria. The council publishes the exact area as a map or a street list, so check your address against it.
Southend-on-Sea City Council also runs its own address-level lookup: check whether a specific address falls inside the scheme.
What this means for landlords
Selective licensing applies to privately rented homes of any size in the designated area, including single lets. Letting an unlicensed property inside the area can mean a civil penalty of up to £40,000 and a rent repayment order of up to 2 years’ rent for months since 1 May 2026, and up to 12 months’ rent for earlier months.
Is your property inside the scheme area?
This checker reflects HouseFile’s records of council licensing designations, not the councils’ live registers. Our records indicate the position at the verification date shown on each result. Schemes are designated, renewed and revoked throughout the year, and postcode-level lookups are approximate near scheme boundaries. Always confirm with the council before letting or buying a property, using the source link on each card. This is general information, not legal advice.
If you hold a licence here, HouseFile can track its renewal date
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