Licensing in Blackpool

• Selective licence

  In force

  Inner area selective licensing scheme 2025–2030

  Area

  All land within the eight named inner wards of Blackpool: Bloomfield, Brunswick, Claremont, Talbot, Tyldesley, Victoria, Warbreck and Waterloo. The public notice expressly covers the whole of each named ward.

  8 wards named in the scheme:

  • Bloomfield
  • Brunswick
  • Claremont
  • Talbot
  • Tyldesley
  • Victoria
  • Warbreck
  • Waterloo

  Ward boundaries: Current wards named in the 2024 designation

  Runs

  1 April 2025 to 30 March 2030

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £772

  Current table, last modified 2 July 2026: £772 for a property occupied by one household, plus £95 per additional unit. £354 is due with the application and £418, plus additional unit charges and subject to discounts, if successful. Change of ownership to an existing licence is £140. Published discounts are £200 where the Blackpool Standard is met on inspection and £20 per additional qualifying unit; alternatively £100 for a single-household property rated EPC A, B or C where the Blackpool Standard is not met, with a £20 additional unit EPC discount. These are discount amounts, not total fees; do not assume they can all be combined. The checklist requires supporting documents, a declaration and inspection.

  Who needs one

  Privately rented houses and flats in the designated wards, including single-household homes and smaller HMOs that do not require a mandatory HMO licence, subject to the statutory selective licensing exemptions.

  Exemptions

  Properties requiring mandatory HMO licensing and statutory selective licensing exemptions, including qualifying social landlord accommodation. The council's historic application deadline does not exempt an unlicensed property now.

  Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditions
  ›How we checked this

  The public notice records designation on 20 February 2024, Secretary of State confirmation on 15 November 2024 and commencement on 1 April 2025. It says the designation shall cease to have effect on 31 March 2030, so the last operative day shown here is 30 March 2030. Confirm that exact final day before relying on a conventional five-year summary. The application deadline of 1 October 2025 has passed. The notice's URL still says central area, but its text is the current inner area designation. The map link in that notice does not provide a working public map; the whole-ward scope is stated explicitly in the notice and current scheme page. Old proposed conditions labelled 2024–2029 are not the current scheme dates. Historical South Shore, Claremont and Central additional licensing schemes must not be treated as currently operating. The notice’s opening paragraph says the designation was made on 20 February 2024, but its closing sealing sentence calls 15 November 2024 the making date. Those descriptions conflict; neither changes the expressly stated commencement date. Confirm the making and sealing history with the council if material.

  Sources

  • blackpool.gov.uk: selective licensing
  • blackpool.gov.uk: central area selective licence public notice
  • blackpool.gov.uk: housing licence fees
  • blackpool.gov.uk: the blackpool standard checklist
  • blackpool.gov.uk: inner area selective licence conditions
  • blackpool.gov.uk: landlords urged to register for latest selective licensing scheme

• Mandatory HMO licence

  In force

  Mandatory HMO licensing

  Area

  Whole Blackpool Council administrative area. Neighbouring Fylde and Wyre councils have separate licensing arrangements.

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £1,176

  Current fee page, last modified 2 July 2026: first application £1,176; renewal £903. No separate early application discount or mandatory fee instalments are published in this table. The selective scheme's fee split and discounts must not be applied to mandatory applications.

  Who needs one

  HMOs occupied by five or more people in two or more households sharing kitchen, bathroom or toilet facilities, subject to the statutory prescribed description.

  Exemptions

  Statutory HMO licensing exclusions and temporary exemptions apply. A purpose-built flat in a block of three or more self-contained flats is excluded from the mandatory prescribed description; unusual converted buildings need individual assessment.

  Apply on the council’s website
  ›How we checked this

  The council confirms the five-person, two-household test and qualifying standard, self-contained flat and converted building tests. There is no storey threshold. The current licensing hub explicitly says additional HMO licensing is not operating. A small HMO may nevertheless need selective licensing within the inner area. The mandatory page and fee table do not specify a standard licence duration; confirm the term on the licence.

  Sources

  • blackpool.gov.uk: housing licences
  • blackpool.gov.uk: mandatory hmo licensing
  • blackpool.gov.uk: housing licence fees

Council source

We found no consultations when we researched Blackpool.

We could not settle these points when we researched Blackpool on 15 October 2026. Check them with the council before you rely on them.

• Not yet confirmed

  Confirm the selective scheme's exact final operative day: the notice says it ceases on 31 March 2030, whereas a conventional five-year summary may imply that date is inclusive.

• Not yet confirmed

  Recover a working public designation map and establish the precise ward boundary edition. Both current council pages explicitly cover all eight named wards; no partial streets or partial wards are stated.

• Not yet confirmed

  Recover the current housing civil penalty matrix and formal adoption or implementation evidence for the Renters' Rights Act changes. A revised page date or statutory maximum alone does not establish local policy adoption.

• Not yet confirmed

  Confirm the mandatory licence duration and any property-specific fee adjustments directly with the council; these are not published in the current fee table.

• Not yet confirmed

  No current replacement designation, additional licensing proposal, recently expired scheme or live housing licensing consultation was established in the current licensing hub and targeted council searches. Monitor later decisions; this is not assurance against an unpublished proposal.

• Not yet confirmed

  Clarify the notice’s inconsistent making dates: its opening paragraph says 20 February 2024, whereas its closing sealing sentence says 15 November 2024. The notice separately records Secretary of State confirmation on 15 November and commencement on 1 April 2025.

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Blackpool is in North West, where registration is planned from 15 May 2027 to 14 August 2027. The regulations are still in draft. Read about the register