Local Authorities, England PART 1 Introduction Citation, commencement, extent and application 1 1 These Regulations may be cited as the Local Authorities (Rental Auctions) (England) and Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) Regulations 2024. 2 The Regulations come into force on 2nd December 2024. 3 The Regulations extend to England and Wales, and apply to England. PART 2 Rental Auctions Interpretation 2 In this Part of these Regulations— “ the Act ” means the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023; “ auction period ”, in relation to particular qualifying high-street premises , is the period of 12 weeks starting with the first day on which the conditions in section 203(1) of the Act are satisfied in relation to those premises, and references in this Part to a week by reference to its ordinal number are to that week in the auction period; “ the premises ” means the premises which are to be the subject of the rental auction ; “ working day ” means a day other than— a Saturday or Sunday, Christmas Day or Good Friday, or a day which is a bank holiday under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 in England and Wales. Designation of high streets and town centres 3 1 This regulation applies where a local authority wishes— a to designate— i a street in its area as a high street under section 191(1) of the Act, or ii an area within its area as a town centre under section 191(2) of the Act, or b to vary or withdraw an existing designation under section 191 of the Act. 2 The local authority must publish a designation proposal in such a way as will, in the opinion of the local authority, bring it to the attention of— a members of the local community in relation to the high-street or area concerned, and b any other person who may, in the opinion of the local authority, be affected by the designation, or by the variation or withdrawal of the designation. 3 The designation proposal must include the following information— a where the local authority proposes to designate— i a street, the address of that street; ii an area, the borders of that area; b where the local authority proposes to vary a designation, the effect of the changes proposed; c where the local authority proposes to withdraw a designation, details of the street or area which will no longer be designated under the local authority’s proposals; d the local authority’s reasons for making the designation proposal, or for varying or withdrawing an existing designation, as the case may be; e a period of not less than 28 days within which representations may be made to the local authority in relation to the proposal; f an e-mail address, and a postal address, to which representations may be sent. 4 A designation proposal published under this regulation may include the local authority’s proposals to designate, vary, or withdraw a designation in relation to more than one street or area. Letting notices and counter notices 4 1 An initial letting notice served by a local authority under section 195 of the Act must be in the form set out as Form 1 in Schedule 1, and contain the information required by that form. 2 A final letting notice served by a local authority under section 198 of the Act must be in the form set out as Form 2 in Schedule 1, and contain the information required by that form. 3 A local authority serving an initial letting notice or a final letting notice must— a use reasonable endeavours to determine whether any person— i has an interest in the affected premises which is superior to that of the landlord , or ii is a mortgagee of the affected premises, and b serve a copy of the initial letting notice or final letting notice on that person. 4 A counter notice given by a landlord under section 201 of the Act must be in the form set out as Form 3 in Schedule 1, and contain the information required by that form. Preliminary steps for a rental auction 5 1 Where a local authority intends to arrange for a rental auction to be carried out in respect of qualifying high-street premises under section 203(1) of the Act it must instruct a qualified person to enter and survey the premises, for the purpose of preparing a schedule of works required to raise the premises to the minimum standard to be provided for under paragraph 1(4)(a) of Schedule 2. 2 For the purposes of paragraph (1), a “ qualified person ” means a person who appears to the local authority to be qualified to carry out the survey referred to in paragraph (1). Rental auction: first week 6 1 Where a local authority intends to arrange for a rental auction to be carried out in respect of qualifying high-street premises under section 203(1) of the Act, the local authority must— a before the end of the first week, serve notice of its intention on the landlord, and b as soon as possible after serving that notice, undertake the following searches in relation to the premises— i local authority enquiries, as set out on conveyancing form CON29 , but without including the optional enquiries in conveyancing form CON29O ; ii an official search of the local land charges register; iii the standard commercial drainage and water enquiries on conveyancing form CON29DWCom ; iv a flood risk search. 2 The notice served under paragraph (1)(a) must— a inform the landlord that the local authority intends to arrange a rental auction; b identify the premises; c set out an email address of the local authority that the landlord may use to contact the local authority in connection with the auction process; d require the landlord to provide an email address which the local authority may use to contact the landlord in connection with the auction process. Rental auction, second week: obligations on the local authority and landlord 7 1 The local authority must before the end of the second week serve on the landlord— a a notice containing requirements under section 210(2) of the Act for the landlord to give the local authority the information specified in paragraph (2) in relation to the premises before the end of the third week, b the terms of the proposed tenancy contract , which must comply with paragraph (4), and c the proposed terms of the tenancy which must comply with paragraph (5). 2 The local authority must require the landlord to give the following information, unless the local authority considers that information specified in any sub-paragraph is not necessary or relevant for the exercise of its functions in relation to the premises in question— a full and accurate responses to general pre-contract enquiries for commercial property transactions, including any supplemental pre-contract enquiries relevant to commercial property on the grant of a tenancy; b proof of the landlord’s title to the premises— i where the landlord’s title is registered, in the form of official copies of the entries relating to the landlord’s title at His Majesty’s Land Registry, with the title plan; ii where the landlord’s title is unregistered, evidence of title to the premises in the form of— aa an abstract of title or an epitome of title with photocopies of the documents referred to, and bb production of every document or an abstract, epitome or copy of it with an original marking by a conveyancer either against the original or an examined abstract or an examined copy; c the following certificates, if available— i a current electrical installation testing certificate; ii a current energy performance certificate; iii a current water safety certificate; iv a current gas safety certificate; v a current fire safety certificate; vi a test certificate for any mechanical, electrical or life safety systems present in, or which serve, the premises; d if available, a fire risk assessment, and e if available, an asbestos survey, and where relevant, an asbestos management plan. 3 The information provided on the proposed tenancy contract and the proposed terms of the tenancy served under paragraph (1) must state that the landlord may make representations before the end of the third week on the terms of the tenancy contract and the tenancy, including— a the description of the premises, and where the premises form part of a building, on the description of the building; b where the premises concerned comprise a unit in a shopping centre, on the definitions of “the Centre”, and the “tenant’s plant”; c the length of the term; d what, if any, service charge provisions are to be included; e what rights need to be granted for the use and enjoyment of the premises by the tenant; f what title guarantee is to be given; g whether the contract should, where the landlord fails to complete the landlord’s works within the period required in the tenancy contract— i provide for liquidated damages as set out in paragraph 6(1) and (2) of Schedule 2, or ii give the tenant the right to complete the landlord’s works at the tenant’s own cost, as set out in paragraph 6(3) of Schedule 2. 4 A proposed tenancy contract to be entered into under section 204 of the Act— a must, subject to paragraph (6), include the terms specified in paragraphs 1 to 5 and 7 to 22 of Schedule 2 or terms having substantially the same effect as any of those terms, b may include the terms specified in paragraph 6(1) and (2) or in paragraph 6(3) of Schedule 2 or terms having substantially the same effect as any of those terms, and c must include the terms of the tenancy as an annex to the tenancy contract. 5 The proposed tenancy must, subject to paragraph (6), contain the terms set out in Schedule 3, so far as they apply to the premises or terms having substantially the same effect as any of those terms. 6 The local authority may amend any of the terms of the tenancy contract or the terms of the tenancy if the landlord proposes, or agrees to, the amended term. 7 A notice served by the local authority under section 210(2) in accordance with this regulation or otherwise in connection with the exercise of the local authority’s functions under Part 10 of the Act in respect of the premises must contain a statement that if the person on whom the notice is served— a fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a requirement in the notice, or b provides false information which that person knows or should reasonably know to be false, that person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine. Rental auction, third week: landlord’s representations 8 1 If the landlord wishes to make any representations in relation to the matters set out in regulation 7(3) or (4), the landlord must serve those representations on the local authority before the end of the third week. 2 The local authority must take any representations made by the landlord into account in finalising the terms of the tenancy contract and the tenancy. 3 Where the landlord serves representations or information on the local authority by email, the local authority may use the email address used by the landlord for the purposes of the auction process, whether or not the landlord has provided such an address in response to the notice referred to in regulation 6(1) . Rental auction, fourth week: the auction pack 9 1 The local authority must before the end of the fourth week serve on the landlord the following documents (“the auction pack”)— a the tenancy contract, and the terms of the tenancy, revised, where appropriate, to take account of any representations made by the landlord; b a brief explanation as to how the landlord’s representations have been taken into consideration; c the information requested under regulation 7(2)(a) given by the landlord, so far as it is available; d the evidence of the landlord’s title to the premises provided by the landlord as requested under regulation 7(2)(b) , so far as is available; e a marketing brochure; f the results of the searches undertaken under regulation 6(1)(b) , so far as they are available; g the certificates and other information requested from the landlord under regulation 7(2)(c) , (d) and (e), so far as they are available; h any survey of the premises carried out on behalf of the local authority. 2 The local authority must include the following information in the marketing brochure— a the postal address for the premises; b the suitable high-street use for the premises determined by the local authority; c the contact details for the local authority or for the person who is acting on behalf of the local authority in relation to the rental auction. 3 The local authority must also use its reasonable endeavours to include the following information in the marketing brochure— a a plan showing the location of the premises; b photographs of both the internal and the external parts of the premises; c the floor areas of the premises; d the business rates liability for the premises; e the business improvement district levy applicable to the premises, if any; f where available, the service charge payable for the premises for the last service charge year, and the service charge proposed for the current service charge year; g the insurance premium payable in relation to the current insurance policy for the premises; h whether supplies made to the tenant pursuant to the tenancy are exempt from value added tax. Rental auction, fifth to tenth weeks: the marketing period 10 1 As soon as reasonably practicable in the fifth week, the local authority must begin to market the premises by arranging for details of the premises, with a link to the auction pack to be included— a in a prominent position on the local authority’s website; b on a website which appears to the local authority to be one of the leading websites advertising commercial properties for rent. 2 The local authority must continue to market the premises as provided in paragraph (1) from the fifth week to the end of the tenth week (the “marketing period”). 3 The local authority must serve all bids received which satisfy the conditions in paragraph (4) (“valid bids”) on the landlord as soon as reasonably practicable after the end of the ninth week, and in any event by the end of the tenth week. 4 For the purposes of this regulation, a “valid bid” must— a specify an annual rental bid, exclusive of value added tax; b include a description of the bidder’s proposed use of the premises, which must be within the suitable high-street use specified by the local authority in the marketing brochure; c be submitted with— i the tenancy contract, validly signed by the bidder, and with the name and address of the bidder correctly entered on the contract; ii proof of the bidder’s identity, where this is reasonably required by the local authority; d be made by a person who is not the landlord or a subsidiary undertaking of the landlord, within the meaning of section 1162 of the Companies Act 2006 , read with Schedule 7 to that Act; e be received by the local authority before the end of the tenth week. 5 Neither the local authority nor the landlord may disclose any information in relation to a valid bid to any other bidder or prospective bidder. 6 The local authority may liaise with any bidder or prospective bidder during the marketing period to assist the bidder or prospective bidder to submit a valid bid. 7 The local authority must— a serve any valid bids received after the end of the ninth week (“late bids”) which have not been served on the landlord under paragraph (3), or b serve notice on the landlord that no late bids have been received, as soon as reasonably practicable after the end of the tenth week, and at the latest before the end of the eleventh week. Rental auction: the successful bidder 11 1 The landlord may choose to accept any of the valid bids as the successful bid. 2 The landlord must serve notice on the local authority of the successful bidder before the end of two working days after the day on which the landlord received the late bids, or the notice, referred to in regulation 10(7) . 3 If the landlord fails to serve notice as required by paragraph (2), the local authority may choose not to accept any bid offered. 4 If the local authority choose to accept a bid, it must choose the bidder offering the highest annual rental value for the premises as the successful bidder, unless paragraph (5) applies. 5 If it appears to the local authority that it is not reasonably practicable to enter into a contract with the successful bidder chosen under paragraph (1) or (4), the local authority may choose the bidder offering the highest annual rental value for the premises with whom it is reasonably practicable to enter into a contract as the successful bidder. Rental auction: conclusion 12 The rental auction is concluded on the exchange of the tenancy contract. Auction costs 13 1 The local authority may require the successful bidder to pay the following costs as part of the consideration for the grant of a tenancy— a the legal costs incurred by the local authority in the preparation of the auction pack referred to in regulation 9(1) , including the preparation of— i the tenancy contract, and ii the tenancy agreement; b the search fees incurred by the local authority under regulation 6(1)(b) ; c the costs of carrying out a survey required under regulation 5. 2 The local authority may not require the successful bidder to pay any costs associated with the auction process except for the costs listed in paragraph (1). Service of documents 14 1 Subject to paragraph (2), a document may be served on a person or given to a person under these Regulations— a by being delivered personally to the person; b by being left at the appropriate address of the person; c by being sent to the appropriate address of the person— i by a registered post service (as defined in section 125(1) of the Postal Services Act 2000) , or ii by a postal service which provides for the delivery of the document to be recorded; d by being transmitted to the person by email to the address— i provided by the local authority under regulation 6(2)(c) , in the case of documents served on the local authority, and ii provided by the landlord in response to regulation 6(2)(d) or used by the landlord to send representations or information to the local authority under these Regulations. 2 An initial letting notice and a final letting notice must be served on the landlord by— a being left at, or b sent to, in accordance with paragraph (1)(c), both the premises and the appropriate address of the landlord. 3 The “appropriate address” of a person is— a in the case of a body corporate, the address of the registered office, or principal place of business of the body; b in the case of a partnership, the address of the principal office of the partnership; c in any other case, the last known address of the person. 4 Where a document is served or given as described— a in paragraph (1)(b) or (d) or (2)(a), it is to be taken to have been received— i on the day of delivery, provided that it is left at the address, or in the case of email, transmitted, before 16:30 on a working day, or ii in any other case, on the first working day after the day of delivery, and for these purposes “ day of delivery ” includes the day on which an email was transmitted; b in paragraph (1)(c) or (2)(b), it is to be taken to have been received 48 hours after it is sent unless the contrary is shown. 5 For the purposes of section 214(4) of the Act, the local authority is to be treated as having taken the last step required to serve a letting notice— a in the case of delivery by hand, on the day on which the letting notice is left at the address concerned; b in the case of delivery by post, on the day on which the letting notice is entrusted by the local authority to the registered post service, or postal service. PART 3 General Permitted Development: consequential amendment Amendment to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 15 In Part 4 of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 , after class DA, insert— Class DB: Use of qualifying high-street premises changing to a suitable high-street use Permitted development DB. Development consisting of a change of use of a building which is a qualifying high-street premises within the meaning of section 192(2) of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (“ the 2023 Act ”) and any land within the curtilage of that building to a suitable high-street use (as defined by section 192(4) of the 2023 Act) for the duration of a tenancy granted following a rental auction of the premises held under Part 10 of the 2023 Act. Development not permitted DB.1 Development is not permitted by Class DB if the premises form part of a site which is, or forms part of— a a military explosives storage area, or b a safety hazard area. Conditions DB.2 Development is permitted by Class DB subject to the following conditions— a the local authority responsible for the rental auction must notify the local planning authority of— i the suitable high-street use for which the premises will be used; ii the date on which that use will commence; iii the date on which that use will cease; b at the end of the tenancy granted in relation to the premises, the premises must revert to their former use. . Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Alex Norris Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government 7th November 2024