Localism Act 2011

185 Exemption from HMO licensing for buildings run by co-operatives

(1) In Schedule 14 to the Housing Act 2004 (buildings which are not HMOs for the purposes of that Act (excluding Part 1)) after paragraph 2A insert—

“Buildings controlled or managed by a co-operative society

2B (1) A building where—

(a) the person managing or having control of it is a co-operative society whose rules are such as to secure that each of the conditions set out in sub-paragraph (2) is met, and

(b) no person who occupies premises in the building does so by virtue of an assured tenancy, a secure tenancy or a protected tenancy.

(2) The conditions are—

(a) that membership of the society is restricted to persons who are occupiers or prospective occupiers of buildings managed or controlled by the society,

(b) that all management decisions of the society are made by the members (or a specified quorum of members) at a general meeting which all members are entitled to, and invited to, attend,

(c) that each member has equal voting rights at such a meeting, and

(d) that, if a person occupies premises in the building and is not a member, that person is an occupier of the premises only as a result of sharing occupation of them with a member at the member’s invitation.

(3) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) “co-operative society” means a body that—

(a) is registered—

(i) as a co-operative society under section 1 of the 1965 Act, or

(ii) is a pre-2010 Act society (as defined by section 4A(1) of the 1965 Act) which meets the condition in section 1(2) of the 1965 Act, and

(b) is neither—

(i) a non-profit registered provider of social housing, nor

(ii) registered as a social landlord under Part 1 of the Housing Act 1996.

(4) In this paragraph—

• “the 1965 Act” means the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies and Credit Unions Act 1965;

• “assured tenancy” has the same meaning as in Part 1 of the Housing Act 1988;

• “protected tenancy” has the same meaning as in the Rent Act 1977;

• “secure tenancy” has the same meaning as in Part 4 of the Housing Act 1985.”

(2) Until the coming into force of section 1 of the 2010 Act, the paragraph 2B inserted by subsection (1) of this section has effect as if for sub-paragraph (3)(a) of that paragraph there were substituted—

“(a) is a society registered, or treated as registered, under section 1 of the 1965 Act in the case of which the condition in section 1(2)(a) of that Act is fulfilled (bona fide co-operative society),”.

(3) Until the coming into force of section 2 of the 2010 Act, the paragraph 2B inserted by subsection (1) of this section has effect as if in sub-paragraph (4) of that paragraph “Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965” were substituted for “Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies and Credit Unions Act 1965”.

(4) In subsections (2) and (3) “the 2010 Act” means the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies and Credit Unions Act 2010.