Parliament Action. Credit: Renters Reform Coalition.
The campaign for the Renters Rights Act shows that real, meaningful change is possible when we work together, speak out for what is right, and demand what we really need.
The Campaign
For years, organisations campaigned to influence and secure the passage of the Renters Rights Act, the biggest change to private rented housing legislation in over 40 years. This campaign was live and responsible for influencing four different Prime Minister and seven Housing Secretaries of State to get these changes passed.
As well as working separately across the sector, the Renters Reform Coalition brought together 19 organisations with decades of experience of fighting for renters to influence politicians and secure a once-in-a-generation uplift in renters’ rights. The campaign fought with one voice, ensuring that this new legislation will benefit all private renters.
This new law gives renters greater security in their homes, by abolishing section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions. Helps tackle discrimination, by making ‘No DSS’ adverts, ends outrageous rent-in-advance demands by capping it at one month’s rent, and creates a national landlord database, giving 11 million private renters greater recourse to their rights.
Renters Rights Coalition’s members parliament event in 2023. Credit: Renters Rights Coalition.
It is a privilege to be shortlisted for this award and to get recognition for the hundreds of thousands of people who’ve campaigned for these changes for years, for the renters who demanded it, and for the organisations involved in driving it forward and the work put in to making change happen.”
Jack Madden
Head of Campaigns and Organising, Shelter
The Change
Across England, 11 million private renters are living in insecure homes. Section 21 ‘no-faut’ evictions have been one of the biggest causes of homelessness across England for decades, as landlords are able to evict their tenants, for no reason whatsoever, with just two months’ notice.
The Renters’ Right Act not only scraps section 21 evictions once and for all, but also goes further to improve the rights of private renters. When this act comes into force in May 2026, it will abolish section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions; make ‘no DSS’ adverts illegal, meaning that landlords can no longer advertise their preference not to rent to someone because they are in receipt of benefits; it establishes the creation of a landlord database, so that renters can know who their landlords are, and their track record of renting; and makes renting more affordable by limiting the amount of ‘rent-in-advance’ that landlords can request.
Other changes introduced in the Act include banning predatory bidding wars when securing a home, allowing renters to request a pet in their home, and empowering them to challenge above-market rent increases and poor housing conditions.
The Future
The Coalition will be working to make sure that the Renters’ Rights Act makes a real difference in renters’ lives. That means making sure renters know and use their rights, and the law is upheld by local authorities. “We will build on our success and the strength of the renters’ movement to tackle the number one issue that still impacts tenants – the high cost of rent,” said Jack. “We will continue to campaign until renters are just as able as homeowners to enjoy safe, secure and fulfilling lives.”
Who else was involved?
Renters across the country, their allies, and: Shelter, Generation Rent, Nationwide Foundation, ACORN, London Renters Union, Renters’ Rights London, Safer Renting, Greater Manchester Tenants Union, Camden Federation of Private Tenants, Charted Institute of Environmental Health, Citizens Advice, Crisis, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Law Centres Network, Lloyds Bank Foundation, New Economics Foundation, the National Union of Students, Toynbee Hall, and Z2K.
