Renters' Rights Bill - limited Impact on staff accommodation

Lots of Schools have staff living in school-provided accommodation. The majority are occupying in the better or proper performance of their employment duties and will be on licences or 'Service Occupancy Agreements', however we know that schools also have tenancy agreements in place and have been awaiting the detail behind the headlines - 'banning no-fault evictions'.

While the first draft of its Renters' Rights Bill promises to finish the overhaul of tenants' rights started by the previous government, we believe the proposed changes are unlikely to have any significant impact on the management of staff accommodation contracts. In summary:

• The rules for 'service occupiers' remain unchanged. As a reminder, this covers (a) employees whose duties require them to live on-site to perform them (proper performance), and (b) employees who are required by their employment contracts to live on-site and whose roles are facilitated by it (better performance). The licence is a right to stay in the property and any right to occupy will still end with their employment.
• The rules for licensees remain unchanged. This covers employees who are not service occupiers and do not have 'exclusive possession' of their accommodation (for example, a serviced room in halls, gap year students with term time rooms only or those with more transitory arrangements). These employees do not have security of tenure and their accommodation can still be ended on four weeks' notice.
• The rules for employee-tenants on Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) are expanded to cover the gap left by the removal of 'no-fault' notices. Where accommodation has been let to a tenant "in consequence of" their employment, ie a School letting property to a teacher, the tenancy can be brought to an end on two months' notice where either:
  • • The employee-tenant has ceased to be employed
    • The tenancy was granted to give the employee-tenant accommodation during "the early period" of their employment, that purpose has been met, and the employer now intends to let the property to another current or future employee

This is therefore likely to be helpful to Schools in that there is a ground which is more suited to the facts of the tenant's occupation and is likely to only be slightly more difficult to establish than the current grounds.

• In all cases, the Criminal Law Act 1977 and the Protection from Eviction Act 1977 will continue to apply. Employers will not be able to use force to enter premises if a person is on the premises and opposed to entry, and an order for possession must still be obtained if the employee refuses to leave when required to do so.

The Renters' Rights Bill is in its early stages and may evolve as it passes through Parliament.  However, the Bill adopts much of the same wording as the previous Bill which enjoyed cross-party support, and it is therefore unlikely that there will be any significant changes before the Bill becomes law.  For now, employers can take comfort that staff accommodation contracts are likely to remain largely untouched by the Bill.

For further details please contact Sarah Outram on 0117 314 5253 or Philip Sheppard on 0117 314 5621 in our Commercial Property team, or complete the form below.