Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has called on landlords to make it easier for responsible tenants to keep well-behaved pets in their homes as he announced an overhaul of the model tenancy contracts.

It is understood that only around seven per cent of private landlords advertise their properties as suitable for pets, meaning many people struggle to find a home suitable for themselves and their pets or they have been forced to give up their pets all together.

The model tenancy contract for renters, to be published later this year can be used as the basis of lease agreements. It will be revised to remove restrictions on well-behaved pets while ensuring that landlords’ properties are protected from damage by badly behaved pets.

The Government is clear there should be a balance with responsible pet owners not being penalised and landlords being more flexible in their approach. Total bans on renters with pets should only be implemented where there is good reason, such as in smaller properties or flats where owning a pet could be impractical.

Robert Jenrick said: “Pets bring a huge amount of joy and comfort to people’s lives, helping their owner’s through difficult times and improving their mental and physical wellbeing. It’s a shame that thousands of animal-loving tenants and their children can’t experience this because they rent their homes instead of owning property.

“So, I’m overhauling our model tenancy contract to encourage more landlords to consider opening their doors to responsible pet owners. We will be listening to tenants and landlords to see what more we can do to tackle this issue in a way that is fair to both.”

The Government claims this is part of its mission to improve life for tenants, recognising that more people are renting and for longer periods. The tenancy agreement overhaul comes on top of banning unfair letting fees and capping tenancy deposits, saving tenants across England an estimated £240 million a year.

In the Queen’s Speech it confirmed its commitment to scrapping ‘no fault’ Section 21 evictions. Next it is planning to bring forward bills to update the relationship between tenants and landlords, expand access to and use of the rogue landlords register and database, as well as introducing a Lifetime Deposit scheme, to make moving between properties easier and cheaper.

By Patrick Mooney, Editor