The council could once again be on a collision course with Hyndburn landlords over selective licensing.
The borough has opened a fresh round of consultation on which areas of Accrington should be covered by new rules aimed at making sure privately rented properties are up to the required standard.
But a landlords chief has claimed council bosses have not kept promises to properly engage them, and differences remain unresolved.
Last year a high court judge found there had been insufficient consultation with landlords over previous plans, hitting the council in the pocket to the tune of £100,000 in legal fees.
Deputy leader Coun Clare Pritchard said the area covered by the new scheme was 39 per cent smaller the previous one. She added: “We have had quite a few stakeholder meetings with the landlords and residents from various areas of Hyndburn to come forward with proposals to improve the rented sector.
“There are areas of Central and Springhill, which is new to the scheme, parts of Woodnook and Peel and Church and Church Kirk. But we haven’t yet reached agreement with them.
“We do realise that the private rented sector has a huge role to play in housing and we want to make it as high a standard as we possibly can.”
The licensing scheme areas were approved by the council’s cabinet committee on Wednesday, January 11.
It had been due to be discussed at November’s cabinet meeting, but was withdrawn.
Paul Brown, chair of Hyndburn Landlords Association, said things were ‘moving in the right direction’. But he added: “There are a lot of issues that have been raised with Hyndburn Council that they have not come back on with any substance. They're not going to come back to us until January 15, which is after the Cabinet meeting, so to my mind it's a little bit pointless.
“The scheme does appear to be smaller, but it also takes in areas with higher rental densities. So while its footprint may be smaller it could affect as many properties.”
The scheme will now be subject to a 12-week public consultation and council chiefs are hopeful it could be in force before the end of the year. Last September, Coun Pritchard met with housing minister Grant Shapps and she said housing issues remain a top council priority.
