Licensing in Wirral

• Selective licence

  In forceMedium confidence

  Selective licensing Scheme 4 — four LSOAs (2024–2029)

  Area

  Exact designated areas of Bidston & St James West (E01007123), Birkenhead West (E01007127), Egremont North (E01007218) and Seacombe St Paul’s (E01007273). These are small statistical areas, not whole wards. Original Scheme 4 omitted all Paterson Street and even-numbered Park Close, subsequently covered by separate Scheme 4A from 1 July 2024. Current combined maps/address schedules include both schemes; check which applies to the particular property. Numerous roads have partial odd/even ranges (for example Arkle Road 45–71 odd/42–60 even and Boundary Road 42–76 even), so a street name alone cannot establish whether a property is covered. Check the council map.

  Runs

  From 1 April 2024

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £585

  Current operational hub and 2026/27 fee directory confirm £585. Linked 2024 fee sheet provides £100 accreditation discount, £100 within three months of scheme commencement or purchase, £25 multiple-property discount and £150 EPC C-or-above discount; its example demonstrates combining eligible discounts. Opening application windows have ended, but a qualifying recent purchase may still qualify. Do not assume eligibility. Source conflict: 2026 directory lists EPC C-or-above reduced fee £434 whereas £585 less the linked sheet’s £150 is £435. Directory also lists £385 for an accredited/early ownership case; confirm exact applicable discount combination. Newly licensable property first applying in final six months may qualify for 50% fee. Instalments £50; paper/assisted application £100. Confirm total before paying; no general current early-bird amount inferred.

  Who needs one

  Non-exempt privately rented dwellings in the exact designated area, including smaller HMOs not subject to Part 2 licensing. Map boundary and particular address/number ranges govern; not all properties on named roads or in surrounding wards.

  Exemptions

  Statutory Housing Act 2004/selective-licensing exemptions apply, including properties subject to Part 2 HMO licensing; confirm the precise tenancy/building case with the council. The current landing page does not provide a complete property-specific exemption determination.

  Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditionsCouncil's map or designation
  ›How we checked this

  Current hub confirms commenced 1 April 2024. December 2023 decision and March 2024 minutes describe scheme as running until 31 March 2029; original legal public-notice URL is now 404. Search-index text of that unavailable notice uses “cease to have effect on 31 March 2029”, which would yield lastday 30 March under this dataset’s rule, but the complete notice could not be freshly retrieved. Exact final day is therefore null pending recovery; no silent conversion of committee “until” into a legal cease date. Core current applicability is confirmed. Combined current map first page was visually inspected; full address tables read as text, no property-level geometry determination. Current operational page says two cohorts, but Scheme 4A is a separate designation within the 2024 cohort.

  Sources

  • wirral.gov.uk: selective licensing
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.gov.uk: wirral council fees and charges 2026 (PDF)
  • wirral.moderngov.co.uk: Minutes Public Pack 27032024 Economy Regeneration Housing Committee (PDF)
  • democracy.wirral.gov.uk: mgDecisionDetails
  • wirral.gov.uk: download

• Selective licence

  In forceMedium confidence

  Selective licensing Scheme 4A — Paterson Street and even Park Close

  Area

  Within Birkenhead West LSOA E01007127, separate designation for Paterson Street 1–157 odd and 2–150 even (CH 41 4 BG/4 BQ/4 BH/4 BJ), and Park Close 2–14 even (CH 41 4 LY). Entire named roads or all Birkenhead West are not inferred from this correction. Odd Park Close was not the omitted group. Map/address list gives guidance for these properties; council must check exact borderline/new property. Property numbers and odd/even sides matter; a whole-road assumption is unsafe.

  Runs

  From 1 July 2024

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £585

  Current operational hub and 2026/27 fee directory confirm £585. Linked 2024 fee sheet provides £100 accreditation discount, £100 within three months of scheme commencement or purchase, £25 multiple-property discount and £150 EPC C-or-above discount; its example demonstrates combining eligible discounts. Opening application windows have ended, but a qualifying recent purchase may still qualify. Do not assume eligibility. Source conflict: 2026 directory lists EPC C-or-above reduced fee £434 whereas £585 less the linked sheet’s £150 is £435. Directory also lists £385 for an accredited/early ownership case; confirm exact applicable discount combination. Newly licensable property first applying in final six months may qualify for 50% fee. Instalments £50; paper/assisted application £100. Confirm total before paying; no general current early-bird amount inferred.

  Who needs one

  Non-exempt privately rented dwellings in the exact designated area, including smaller HMOs not subject to Part 2 licensing. Map boundary and particular address/number ranges govern; not all properties on named roads or in surrounding wards.

  Exemptions

  Statutory Housing Act 2004/selective-licensing exemptions apply, including properties subject to Part 2 HMO licensing; confirm the precise tenancy/building case with the council. The current landing page does not provide a complete property-specific exemption determination.

  Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditionsCouncil's map or designation
  ›How we checked this

  Final Economy Regeneration & Housing Committee minutes 27 March 2024 item 72 approved implementation, stating “Scheme 4A shall run until 31 March 2029” and fee£585. Minutes explain omitted Paterson Street and even Park Close properties were not legally included in Scheme 4, requiring a separate designation. Current operational map/addresses explicitly confirms 1 July 2024 start. Final signed/public Scheme 4A instrument and exact cease-day wording were not recovered; final-day value remains null rather than assuming the same wording or a full five years fromJuly. Report section 3.2 mistakenly refers to odd Park Close once; summary, decision context and Appendix 1/current schedule consistently specify even numbers. Proposal-labelled Appendix 1 map rendered and visually read; operational combined map now confirms start.

  Sources

  • wirral.gov.uk: selective licensing
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.moderngov.co.uk: Appendix 1 Map and Address List Paterson Street and even numbers in Park Close (PDF)
  • wirral.moderngov.co.uk: Minutes Public Pack 27032024 Economy Regeneration Housing Committee (PDF)
  • wirral.moderngov.co.uk: Consideration of proposal to implement selective licensing in Paterson Street and all of Park Close (PDF)
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.gov.uk: wirral council fees and charges 2026 (PDF)
  • wirral.gov.uk: download

• Selective licence

  In forceMedium confidence

  Selective licensing Scheme 5 — six LSOAs (2025–2030)

  Area

  Only designated LSOAs Birkenhead Central E01007128, Lower Tranmere E01007293, Tranmere North E01007130, Hamilton Square B E01034839, Tranmere Lairds E01007291 and Egremont South E01007275, parts of Birkenhead/Wallasey. These are not whole wards or every property on the roads listed in the notice. Current map/address PDF has detailed number/side entries, for example Beckwith Street East 2–14 even and Borough Road 254 A/262 A within first area; an exact boundary and address check is required.

  Runs

  1 October 2025 to 29 September 2030

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £605

  Current Scheme 5 fee from 1 October 2025 is £605. Published reductions: £100 accredited property/approved holder; £100 application within three months of commencement or purchase; £25 multiple property; £150 EPC C-or-above. Official example combines eligible discounts (£255 first/£230 subsequent in initial window); opening window is now over, qualifying purchase-based eligibility remains case-specific. First licensable only in final six months may qualify for 50% fee. Instalments £100, paper application £100, assisted application £100. No unconditional current early-bird price or assumed eligibility.

  Who needs one

  Non-exempt privately rented dwellings in the exact designated area, including smaller HMOs not subject to Part 2 licensing. Map boundary and particular address/number ranges govern; not all properties on named roads or in surrounding wards.

  Exemptions

  Statutory Housing Act 2004/selective-licensing exemptions apply, including properties subject to Part 2 HMO licensing; confirm the precise tenancy/building case with the council. The current landing page does not provide a complete property-specific exemption determination.

  Apply on the council’s websiteLicence conditionsCouncil's map or designation
  ›How we checked this

  Committee approved 17 June 2025, effective 24 June; current public notice dated 24 June 2025 says commenced 1 October 2025 and “shall cease to have effect on 30 September 2030”, so the last day shown here is 29 September 2030. This deliberately follows notice cease wording rather than title/committee “until 30 September”. Council currently offers applications. Map remains headed Proposed but is the current operational download and notice/decision confirms designation; first map page visually inspected, full number schedules read as text, no exact property judgment. Earlier 2020–2025 October cohort endedSeptember 2025, outside last 12 months asof 15 October 2026; not recorded as a recent-expired scheme.

  Sources

  • wirral.gov.uk: selective licensing
  • wirral.gov.uk: selective licensing 2
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • democracy.wirral.gov.uk: ieDecisionDetails
  • wirral.gov.uk: download

• Mandatory HMO licence

  In force

  Mandatory HMO licensing

  Area

  Entire current Wirral Council administrative area. Selective licensing is a separate mapped regime; planning controls do not determine the housing licence.

  Fee

  Published standard fee: £875

  Live HMO page and council fee directory effective 1 April 2026 confirm £875 for a three-year licence with five units of accommodation, +£30 per unit above five. Paper application £975 plus same unit supplement. Live page gives £50 initial-fee reduction for applicants accredited with Wirral before 28 February 2018 or currently with specified third-party associations; association names on source are historical NLA/RLA, so confirm current successor membership eligibility. 2026 directory additionally lists one-year licence £385 plus unit supplement; circumstances for that term not inferred. No separate new/renewal rate or payment-stage split recovered. Pre-inspection technical advice £190.

  Who needs one

  HMOs occupied by five or more people in two or more households, regardless of storeys, sharing WC, personal washing and/or cooking facilities, or with amenities not within a flat; subject to statutory exclusions.

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

  Full valid application/documents and fit-and-proper/suitable management/property tests apply; council aims no longer than 16 weeks. Licence conditions vary with property. January 2024 standards guidance is linked. Current HMO/selective pages retain historic £30,000 penalty wording; adopted 2026 policy governs relevant new cases, not those stale paragraphs. No additional HMO designation, approved new optional scheme, current licensing consultation or discretionary expiry since 15 October 2025 was identified in targeted official searches. This is bounded research, not express current council assurance. Existing selective cohorts are separately recorded below.

  Sources

  • wirral.gov.uk: houses multiple occupation licence
  • wirral.gov.uk: houses multiple occupation
  • wirral.gov.uk: wirral council fees and charges 2026 (PDF)
  • wirral.gov.uk: download
  • wirral.gov.uk: standards and guidance hmo v16 jan 2024 (PDF)
  • wirral.moderngov.co.uk: Appendix 3 Civil Financial Penalty Policy (PDF)
  • democracy.wirral.gov.uk: ieDecisionDetails

Council source

Wirral's civil penalty policy

We found no consultations when we researched Wirral.

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

• Not yet confirmed

  Recover final legal designation/public notices for Scheme 4 and Scheme 4A, and resolve exact final day around 31 March 2029. Final minutes use “until”/“end on 31 March”; unavailable original Scheme 4 public-notice search-index text uses “cease on 31 March”, but the original notices could not be retrieved for verification. The exact final days remain unconfirmed; current status is confirmed by current council hub and schedules.

• Not yet confirmed

  Resolve 2024 fee discount conflict: linked current fee sheet says£150 EPC C-or-above discount from£585 (=£435), but 2026/27 directory lists reduced fee£434. Confirm stacking/eligibility for accreditation, recent purchase and multiple properties; no unsupported net price.

• Not yet confirmed

  Confirm current mandatory accreditation eligibility where live guidance still names NLA/RLA, and the circumstances/term conditions for directory one-year£385 licence. No unit-to-person/bedroom equivalence assumed.

• Not yet confirmed

  Check exact selective property inclusion against the legally designated LSOA boundary/current schedule, including new dwellings and the Scheme 4/4 A split. Full roads/current wards are not safe substitutes for partial number ranges.

• Not yet confirmed

  Obtain the outcome/minutes of the 12 October 2026 HMO planning motion and any actual HMO Article 4 consultation, making/confirmation notice, legal plan and start date following July progress and October proposals. Agenda/motion/amendment text is not a passed resolution or operative direction; no outcome inferred.

• Not yet confirmed

  Continue checking for any additional HMO designation, approved future/selective renewal, current licensing consultation or later policy replacement; targeted official searches found none beyond recorded cohorts, but absence is qualified.

• Not yet confirmed

  2025 Scheme 5 public notice retains historical penalty/RRO wording; current offence consequences must follow updated law/adopted 2026 policy, not be copied from the 2025 notice.

The national landlord register is separate from licensing. Wirral 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