Lewisham Council’s public consultation on its plans to crack down on rogue landlords through a licensing scheme closes on August 20.

This comes after Mayor Damien Egan called for more tenants to respond to the consultation.

The authority has been building a case for the scheme for a number of months, which it will submit to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

More than a quarter of homes in Lewisham are privately-rented properties.

National licensing guidelines already see landlords apply for a licence to rent buildings with five or more tenants who are not from one household, and who share kitchen, bathroom and toilet.

Lewisham Council extended the regulations, making landlords also need licenses to let multiple-occupant rentals above shops.

But some landlords illegally evict tenants or claim they are from the same family in order to get around the rules, according to a council report.

If the borough-wide licensing scheme is approved it would mean that all privately rented properties would be licensable.

The schemes would work in tandem to ensure that all privately rented properties would be subjected to controls in order to improve standards, council documents explain.

“After the consultation closes on 20 August 2019, we will produce a report of the consultation results. This report, alongside other evidence on the impact of the proposed schemes, will be considered by Mayor and Cabinet in October 2019 as part of the decision-making process.

“If the decision is made to apply to the Secretary of State for borough-wide selective licensing, the consultation report will form part of our application to support the secretary’s decision-making process,” the documents continue.

If approved, the scheme would cover the borough for five years.

For more information visit www.lewisham.gov.uk/renting