Under the terms of your lease, you must get written permission from us before making certain changes and improvements to your home. This permission is called landlord's consent.
Alterations or improvements which need permission
You usually don't need your landlord's consent for minor changes. However, you must get consent for any major or structural changes or additions, and this may also need changes to your lease. You need to get this consent before starting any work.
You will also be responsible for getting the relevant planning permission, and making sure your changes meet building control and health and safety regulations.
We will not ask you to get permission for minor home improvements, like:
- installation of fitted wardrobes or cupboards
- replacement of carpets
- replacing the existing kitchen or bathroom
- carrying out any electrical or gas works by a registered person
You will need permission for:
- replacing windows
- relocating the kitchen or bathroom
- extensions or loft conversions
- removing any walls
If you are unsure if you need permission, call or email the home ownership team.
A surveyor may need to check the property to make sure your plans do not harm nearby properties or buildings. They may also need to check the work once it's done.
Fees
You will need to pay an administration fee to process your application.
If the lease needs to be updated to include the changes you are planning, you will have to pay the legal costs.
Alteration types
We will not give permission for works to be carried that:
- could damage the property or building
- create safety risks
- disturb other residents
- makes the council pay for future repairs or maintenance
- happens in parts of the building not included in your lease (lofts, attics, basements or common gardens) unless they are bought as part of the process.
Windows
The council owns and maintains the windows as they are part of the building structure. You cannot replace the windows or frames on your own.
If your building windows need repairs or replacement, the council will organise the work. You will pay your portion of the costs through your service charges.
Window furniture such as handles, locks, and hinges are the leaseholder’s responsibility.
If all leaseholders in a block agree, the leases can be changed to make each household responsible for their own windows.
Loft conversions
Before starting any work, you will need to buy the loft space from the council, if the surveyor approves.
The council will work out how much the loft is worth at current market rates and update your building insurance value. Solicitors will then handle the ownership transfer and create a new lease for the loft.
This lease will cover the ownership change and who is responsible for what. You can only begin work after all this is done.
You will need to cover all costs for this process and get building control and planning permission.
District heating system
If you want to switch from district heating to your own heating system, you must get written approval from home ownership services first.
Council workers will need to disconnect your current heating, but you will pay all costs related to this work.
You must hire a qualified heating engineer to install your new system.
For some properties, the lease may not allow you to disconnect from the district system.
Adding an extension
When you build an extension, a supplementary lease and new plans will be needed, to add the new structure to your lease.
After the extension is built, the council will be responsible for maintaining its structural parts, just like the rest of the building.
Before the supplementary lease is finalised, we will need to work out if there are other leaseholders in your building, as they will also need to update their lease and plans to include your extension.
Because your property will be larger, your rates and insurance costs will increase.
You will need to pay for all costs related to the extension, including getting planning permission and building control approval.
Requesting permission to make changes
If you are a leaseholder and want to ask for permission to carry out any improvements and alterations to your home, you will need to complete the landlord's consent form.
If your building is over 18 meters or more than 7 storeys, it is considered a high-rise residential building. The Building Safety Act 2022 and the Fire Safety Act 2021 have stricter rules for any internal changes that could affect fire safety. You must get consent before making any changes
Alterations carried out without consent
If you have already started or made changes to your property without our permission, you will be in breach of your lease and will still need to get our permission.
Making changes without our permission means you will have to return the property back to its original state if consent is not given.