Author: Martin Driver

Sefton Council is using funding secured from the Government to employ two people to help ensure landlords are meeting national Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) at properties they let.

MEES Regulations set a minimum energy efficiency level for domestic private rented properties. Landlords letting a property must have an energy performance certificate (EPC) to show tenants how energy efficient the property is.

Fines

Under MEES, the lowest EPC rating allowed is an E. Properties with an EPC rating of F or G cannot be rented out without a valid exemption. Landlords who don’t comply with the regulations can be fined up to £5,000.

Later this month, the Council’s two new employees will start working with landlords to ensure they understand and are meeting the requirements. They will also advise on the funding that may be available to help them meet the MEES standards.

Keeping bills down

Cllr Trish Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing said: “At a time when people are facing significant rises in heating costs, despite the Government providing households with a loan to keep bills down, it is important that tenants in private rented accommodation can benefit from properties that are fuel efficient.

“Securing this funding will enable Sefton Council to work with landlords to put the MEES Standards in place, which can include help from grant funding, but also to take enforcement action against those who refuse to support their tenants by complying with the legislation.”

Sefton Council secured the funding of over £41,300 by participating in the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Domestic Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Compliance and Enforcement Competition. The competition supports local authorities to raise awareness of the PRS Regulations to both landlords and tenants as well as building capacity to tackle the identification of non-compliant landlords. The funding can also be used to support local authorities to create processes to enforce the PRS Regulations.

The £6.3 million competition is funded by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and managed by the Midlands Net Zero Hub.

Requirements

Michael Gallagher, Head of Midlands Net Zero Hub, said:
“Midlands Net Zero Hub is delighted to be supporting local authorities across England and Wales through the PRS Enforcement Competition, funded by BEIS. This competition will assist a further 26 local authorities to implement and enforce the requirements of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Regulations.

“Through improving the quality of housing stock, the whole project looks to target over 95,000 of the worst-performing private rented homes with the ultimate aim of tackling fuel poverty and reducing carbon emissions produced by the domestic housing sector.”

Success

The second round of the PRS MEES competition will see a further 26 local authorities receive funding to improve the energy efficiency standards of domestic properties in the private rented sector. This iteration builds on the success of the previous scheme, which saw 59 local authorities supported.

Cllr Hardy added:

“As well as helping reduce tenants energy costs and helping landlords find funding, improving the affected properties’ energy rating will contribute to Sefton Council’s commitment to tackling global warming by reducing carbon emissions.

Merseyrail will run a limited train service on Saturday 8th October, due to a planned 24-hour strike by Network Rail staff who are members of the RMT union.

The Liverpool City Region rail network is affected by the UK-wide national strike, as Network Rail signalling and maintenance employees will be taking industrial action from 7am on Saturday 8th to 7am on Sunday 9th October.

Hourly service

Merseyrail will run an hourly service calling at all stations on selected lines between 07:30 and 18:30 to help passengers make essential journeys.

A summary of services that will operate on Saturday October 8 is as follows.

• Southport line: Trains will run hourly, calling at all stations.
• Ormskirk line: Trains will run hourly, calling at all stations.
• Chester and Ellesmere Port lines: No trains will operate between Chester and Rock Ferry or Ellesmere Port and Rock Ferry. Trains will run hourly between Rock Ferry and Liverpool Central, calling at all stations.
• New Brighton line: Trains will run hourly, calling at all stations.
• West Kirby line: Trains will run hourly, calling at all stations. 
• Hunts Cross line: No trains will operate between Liverpool Central and Hunts Cross.
• Kirkby line: Trains will run hourly, calling at all stations.

There will be no trains on the Merseyrail network before approximately 07:30 or after approximately 18:30 on Saturday October 8.

There are no rail-replacement buses on the strike day. Passengers need to make alternative travel arrangements where necessary.

Sunday works on Southport line

On Sunday October 9, a normal service will be in operation from the start of service. However, Southport line services will be disrupted due to track renewal work and essential bridge maintenance. Rail replacement buses will run between Hall Road station and Southport station. Trains will run between Hall Road station and Liverpool city centre stations in line with the normal Sunday timetable.

Full timetables are available here. 

Plan ahead

Andy Heath, Managing Director at Merseyrail said: “ As has been the case  with previous days of strike action, Merseyrail continues to plan ahead and ensure train services remain in operation on our network during periods of national disruption.

“We would remind passengers that travelling on Saturday 8th October will require journeys to be planned and that trains are likely to be very busy. We would ask that passengers allow for extra travelling time and be patient with us as we work hard to ensure we get everyone to where they need to be.” 

Customers hoping to travel onwards by train with other train operators should check relevant websites, as many train companies are not running services on Saturday 8th October.