Know where every home stands before licensing starts.
Licensing is expected in 2027 or 2028. The government has confirmed that Housing Benefit will be tied to the licence. Stedwise shows, for each council area, whether each licence you will need is ready. It shows who must provide each piece of evidence, and what to fix first.
Ten to fifteen minutes for the National Standards. No account needed. You see your result on screen, and you can also get it as a PDF.
The sample licence cards
Harbour Lane Housing Ltd, a sample organisation, has 2 licence cards. Under Law now:
- Birmingham, for Kestrel Road and Holly Terrace: Blocked. 1 Standard of accommodation: starts with licensing. 2 Use of accommodation: starts with licensing. 3 Care, support and supervision: starts with licensing. 4 Needs assessment: starts with licensing. 5 Service managers: starts with licensing. Fit and proper person test: starts with licensing. Property safety law: blocked, 16 Kestrel Road: gas safety record expired.
- Sandwell, for Oldbury Lane: Ready. 1 Standard of accommodation: starts with licensing. 2 Use of accommodation: starts with licensing. 3 Care, support and supervision: starts with licensing. 4 Needs assessment: starts with licensing. 5 Service managers: starts with licensing. Fit and proper person test: starts with licensing. Property safety law: met.
Harbour Lane Housing Ltd, a sample organisation, has 2 licence cards. Under When licensing starts:
- Birmingham, for Kestrel Road and Holly Terrace: Blocked. 1 Standard of accommodation: met. 2 Use of accommodation: met. 3 Care, support and supervision: gap. 4 Needs assessment: met. 5 Service managers: blocked, Holly Terrace: no named service manager. Fit and proper person test: unknown. Property safety law: blocked, 16 Kestrel Road: gas safety record expired.
- Sandwell, for Oldbury Lane: Gaps. 1 Standard of accommodation: met. 2 Use of accommodation: gap. 3 Care, support and supervision: not applicable. 4 Needs assessment: unknown. 5 Service managers: met. Fit and proper person test: unknown. Property safety law: met.
Press Law nowPress When licensing starts on the sample organisation’s switch, at the top of the window, in the bar above
Today only property safety law applies. The five licence conditions say “Starts with licensing”. Birmingham is blocked because one gas safety record has expired.When licensing starts, the five conditions and the fit-and-proper test (a check that your directors are suitable) count too. Each one is pass or fail. There is no percentage. Birmingham now also fails condition 5: one scheme has no named service manager.
Fix what stops the licence first
Things you must fix come first, because they stop you whatever your score. Then comes every requirement you do not meet yet. The ones that raise your Readiness score most for each hour of work come first. Each one says what “done” looks like.
The pass mark for the Readiness score is 70%. Each rule set is scored on its own: the National Supported Housing Standards, Birmingham’s S.E.A.Q.A.S. quality award, the Ofsted standards for 16 and 17 year olds, and the Blackpool and Coventry council standards.
The sample to-do list. Readiness score 61 against the National Standards, where the pass mark is 70. It rises to 69 after the first five fixes, with 1 must-fix item still open. The top gaps, in order:
- Must fix, law now: 16 Kestrel Road (B16 8QL): gas safety record expired. Stops you being ready.
- STF-7, government has decided: Pre-eviction protocol. 1.6 points in 2 hours.
- PCS-3, government has decided: Support plans set out the level and type of support. 1.6 points in 2 hours.
- ENV-2, government has decided: Referral management process. 1.6 points in 8 hours.
The licence holder rarely works alone
The licence goes to whoever is “managing or in control” of the homes. The government says that “in many cases, the managing agent will be the appropriate person” (government response (opens in a new tab)).
For each scheme, Stedwise records who does each of sixteen jobs, such as repairs and safeguarding. It records who is responsible for each job and who keeps the evidence. So each organisation sees its own gaps. Stedwise never decides who holds a licence.
The sample responsibility map for Holly Terrace:
- Northfield Homes Association, the head landlord, does inspections, and answers for repairs and health and safety.
- Harbour Lane Housing Ltd, the managing agent, does tenancy or licence management, rent and Housing Benefit, repairs, health and safety, incidents, antisocial behaviour, complaints and staff recruitment and training, and answers for referrals, needs assessments, support planning, move-on and safeguarding.
- Brightpath Support CIC, the support provider, does referrals, needs assessments, support planning, resident engagement, move-on and safeguarding.
- Not recorded yet: council liaison.
Your records replace your answers, and nothing runs out without a warning
Your first result comes from your own answers. When you subscribe, your records count instead: certificates, adopted policies, training records and support reviews. So your score shows what you can prove.
Anything with a date warns you before it runs out. An expired safety certificate shows on the licence card as something you must fix.
The sample alerts:
- Gas safety record, 16 Kestrel Road: expired.
- DBS certificate renewal, Marcus Reid: due in 21 days.
- Fire risk assessment review, 3 Wren Court: due in 34 days.
- Safeguarding refresher training, 2 staff: overdue.
- Support plan review, Holly Terrace: due in 9 days.
- Statement of purpose: adopted.
Every rule is quoted from its source, and labelled with how sure we are
Stedwise watches 88 official sources for changes, from legislation.gov.uk to the regulators and councils. Each change becomes a rule that quotes its source word for word. A person checks and approves it before it counts.
The labels work like the key on a map. A solid border means law. A dashed border means a proposal. A dotted border means our best guess. Our best guess never counts as law.
The sample rule changes:
- Law now: 16 Kestrel Road (B16 8QL): gas safety record expired. Source: Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, reg. 36.
- Government has decided: Holly Terrace: no named service manager, so suitability cannot be evidenced. Source: Government response, 16 April 2026: condition 5.
- Government has decided: Each resident is assessed at move-in or within four weeks, by a suitably skilled person. Source: Government response, 16 April 2026: condition 4.
- Council rule: S.E.A.Q.A.S.: a non-compliant Regulator of Social Housing judgement withholds an award. Source: BVSC and Birmingham City Council quality standards.
- Proposed: Draft licensing regulations published for consultation, open until 10 December 2026. Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, 15 October 2026.
- Our best guess, likely: Checks on each director for disqualification and insolvency, as the CQC fit and proper test does. Source: Our best guess, based on the CQC test that the government response says this test will match.
The dates that matter for your next year
The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 gave the government three powers: to license supported housing, to set National Standards, and to tie Housing Benefit to the licence. The government’s response to its consultation, on 16 April 2026, confirmed all three.
- 23 October 2026The Supported Housing Advisory Panel publishes its first advice to ministers: 31 recommendations on residents’ voice, licensing and the supply of supported housing (initial advice (opens in a new tab)). It is advice, not law.
Today, 11 Nov 2026
- 10 December 2026Government has decidedThe government says it "will" do this. It counts in the "When licensing starts" view.The consultation on the draft licensing regulations closes at 11:59pm. Anyone can respond before then (consultation page (opens in a new tab)).
- Early 2027Government has decidedThe government says it "will" do this. It counts in the "When licensing starts" view.The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) updates its Housing Benefit guidance for supported housing claims to match the Act (written answer 15943 (opens in a new tab)).
- 31 March 2027ProposedAn idea in a consultation or a draft. We show it, but it never changes your score.Councils plan to publish their first supported housing strategies (local plans for supported housing). The regulations (the detailed law) that set this deadline are not made yet.
- 2027 or 2028Our best guessOur own guess, based on similar rules we name. It is not law. It only adds tasks that are worth doing anyway.Licensing is expected to start for all supported exempt accommodation in England. Each council will run it in its own area, and Housing Benefit will be linked to the licence. The government has confirmed licensing but has not set a date. The minister said “next year” on 25 June 2026 (written answer 8570 (opens in a new tab)). Birmingham says 2027 or 2028. The draft regulations (opens in a new tab) would come into force on a date in 2027 that is not filled in yet. Councils would get at least six months to prepare, and running without a licence would become an offence some months after that.
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