The Renters’ Rights Bill has officially received Royal Assent, delivering the biggest reform of renting in over forty years.

More than eleven million private renters across England, including over 2.7 million in London and over 100,000 in Croydon, will now benefit from stronger rights, greater security and fairer treatment in their homes.

The new law abolishes Section 21 no fault evictions, ending the practice that allowed landlords to remove tenants without reason. It introduces periodic tenancies so renters can stay as long as they need and gives councils new powers to crack down on rogue landlords.

The Act also ends rental bidding wars that push up costs, extends Awaab’s Law to private tenants to force landlords to fix dangerous damp and mould quickly, and applies the Decent Homes Standard to private rented homes for the first time. It makes discrimination against tenants with children or those receiving benefits illegal, creates a new Private Rented Sector Database and Ombudsman to improve transparency and ensure swift and fair dispute resolution, and strengthens renters’ rights to request pets so landlords can no longer refuse without good reason.

Sarah Jones, MP for Croydon West said:

“I’m so proud that Labour is delivering this momentous change for renters. We’ve seen families suffer for years due to the lack of laws protecting them – living with horrendous damp and mould, facing discrimination and being chucked out of their properties at a moment’s notice.

“Labour is putting a stop to that. Renters deserve to feel secure in their homes and to know protections are in place to empower them to stand up for their rights.  

“We’re achieving what the Conservatives never could – fairness and opportunities for working people.”