The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 - what do you need to know?

Who does it apply to?

The Act only applies to those occupying under an assured shorthold tenancy (AST) prior to 1 May. It does not affect arrangements with those occupying under the following:

• Accommodation provided by schools which the employee must occupy to carry out their duties (Service Occupancy Agreements) - for instance caretakers.
• Arrangements documented under a Licence to Occupy.
• Those tenancies with very low or very high rent (Common Law Tenancies).
  
  

The initial changes from 1 May 2026

Existing tenancies

Existing AST's automatically converted to Assured Periodic Tenancies on 1 May 2026 and so Schools do not need to re-issue new tenancies.

The legislation requires landlords to have provided their current tenants with an Information Sheet by 31 May 2026 explaining how the changes brought in by the Act affect their tenancy. If the Information Sheet was not served, the landlord could receive a fine. The Information Sheet is now available publicly.

New tenancies granted after 1 May 2026

All new tenancies granted after 1 May 2026 will be on a rolling basis from the outset. In respect of new tenancies, you will need to put in place new tenancy documentation that complies with the Act.

Possession

From 1 May 2026, 'no fault' section 21 notices are abolished under the Act. This means that landlords will need to rely on a revised set of grounds to obtain possession of the property.

Further changes in 2026

Further changes via the Act will be brought in as part of two later phases. In late 2026, Phase 2 will introduce a new Private Rented Sector Database.

All private landlords (including Schools) will need to register on the database. The database is expected to require the upload of documents such as:

• Gas Safety Certificates
• Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICR)
• Energy Performance Certificates (EPC)
  
  

What should I do now?

Tenancy documentation:

For new tenancies, tenancy documentation and tenancy on-boarding processes will need to be modified to ensure these comply with the new Act.

Private Rented Sector Database compliance: 

Schools should start compiling the documents they will need to enable registration on the database and to ensure individual property information is compliant.

We can help Schools both with communications to staff and tenants (including the Information Sheet), and the new tenancy documentation.

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If you would like to discuss how the Act affects your school or if you need assistance with the Information Sheet or new tenancies, please contact Robin Rajanah, Sarah Outram or Tom Davies.