Citation, commencement and application

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2015 and shall come into force on 17th August 2015.

Amendment of Regulations

2.  The Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) Regulations 1986(2) are amended by the substitution, for the form set out in Schedule 1, of the form set out in the Schedule to these Regulations.

Revocations and Savings

3.-(1) The following Regulations are revoked-

(a)The Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) (Amendment) (England) (No. 3) Regulations 2005(3),

(b)The Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2007(4), and

(c)The Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2014(5).

(2) Nothing in these regulations shall affect the validity of any notice served by a secure tenant under section 122(1) of the Housing Act 1985(6) before the coming into force of these Regulations if, at the date of service of the notice, the notice was in the form then prescribed by the Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) Regulations 1986 or in a form substantially to the like effect.

Regulation 2

SCHEDULEPrescribed Form

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

Regulation 2 of these Regulations substitutes the form of notice to be used by a tenant claiming to exercise the right to buy his or her dwelling-house in accordance with section 122 of the Housing Act 1985 (c. 68) ("the 1985 Act"). The Regulations apply in relation to houses and flats in England only.

The new form, known as "RTB1", is set out in the Schedule to these Regulations and replaces the form set out in Schedule 1 to the Housing (Right to Buy) (Prescribed Forms) Regulations 1986 (S.I. 1986/2194) ("the 1986 Regulations"). By virtue of regulation 2 of the 1986 Regulations, a form substantially to the like effect as that set out in the Schedule to these Regulations may be used.

Regulation 3(1) revokes S.I. 2005/2879, S.I. 2007/784 and S.I. 2014/1794 which previously substituted the form of notice set out in Schedule 1 of the 1986 Regulations and have been superseded (by S.I. 2007/784, S.I. 2014/1794 and these Regulations respectively).

These Regulations update the RTB1 form to reflect the reduction of the qualifying period for the Right to Buy from five years to three, pursuant to the amendment to section 118 of the 1985 Act made by section 28 of the Deregulation Act 2015 (c. 20).

A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument, as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.