Ground 7A Criminal Conviction 2026 — Complete Landlord Guide to Mandatory Possession for Serious Offences

Which offences trigger Ground 7A — Schedule 2A to the Housing Act 1988

Ground 7A is triggered by a conviction for an offence listed in Schedule 2A to the Housing Act 1988 (as inserted by the Housing and Planning Act 2016). The Schedule is detailed — the key categories are:

• Offences against the person: Murder and manslaughter; wounding or causing grievous bodily harm with intent (Offences Against the Person Act 1861 s.18); wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm (s.20); assault occasioning actual bodily harm (s.47); rape and sexual assault (Sexual Offences Act 2003); child sexual exploitation offences; harassment and stalking causing serious alarm or distress. The offence must be punishable by imprisonment and connected to the property or locality — though the statute requires that the conviction is for 'a specified offence' rather than imposing a specific locality nexus, in practice the conviction will typically relate to behaviour in or near the property to support the factual basis for possession
• Drug offences: Supply, production, or possession with intent to supply of a controlled drug (particularly Class A drugs — heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, MDMA). The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 offences listed in Schedule 2A include: production of a controlled drug (s.4(2)); supply of a controlled drug (s.4(3)); possession with intent to supply (s.5(3)); permitting premises to be used for drug supply or production (s.8). Using the rented property as a drug distribution hub or 'cuckooing' (county lines drug supply where criminals take over a tenant's property) can result in conviction of the tenant under s.8 of the MDA 1971 (permitting premises to be used), even if the tenant did not personally supply drugs
• Terrorism and extremism offences: The Terrorism Act 2000 and related legislation offences are listed in Schedule 2A. A tenant convicted of terrorism-related offences (preparation of terrorist acts; dissemination of terrorist publications; funding terrorism; membership of proscribed organisations) triggers Ground 7A. Terrorism convictions are among the most serious triggers — courts have consistently supported possession under these circumstances. The mandatory nature of Ground 7A means even sympathetic circumstances cannot prevent possession once a terrorism conviction is established
• Closure orders and civil injunction breaches: Ground 7A also applies where: (1) a closure order has been made under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 in respect of the property, prohibiting access by persons other than those with a right to live there — and the order has been made on the basis of disorder, noise, or nuisance from the property; or (2) the tenant has been found guilty of contempt of court for breach of an anti-social behaviour injunction. These extensions mean Ground 7A can be used even without a criminal conviction, where the court record establishes the behaviour through a civil closure order or injunction breach. For closure orders, the landlord should apply to the court for possession promptly after the closure order is made

Who must be convicted — tenant, household member, or visitor

The conviction triggering Ground 7A does not have to be the tenant's own conviction. This is one of Ground 7A's most important features:

• Tenant personally convicted: The most straightforward case is where the tenant personally is convicted of a Schedule 2A offence. The landlord can immediately proceed to serve a Ground 7A notice. The conviction does not have to relate to behaviour at the property — it can be a conviction for an offence committed elsewhere. However, in practice, the landlord's strongest case is where the offence was committed in or near the property and is connected to the tenancy
• Person residing in the property: Ground 7A also applies where a person who resides in the property (a household member who is not the tenant — a partner, adult child, adult relative, or long-term live-in occupier) is convicted of a Schedule 2A offence. The landlord can serve a Section 8 Ground 7A notice on the tenant (who holds the tenancy) even if it is the household member, not the tenant, who has been convicted. This is significant because it addresses cases where the tenant is a compliant occupier but a family member or cohabitant commits serious offences
• Visitor to the property: Ground 7A can also be triggered by a conviction of a person who was merely visiting the property — not residing there. Where a guest, a dealer visiting to supply drugs, or another visitor to the rented property is convicted of a Schedule 2A offence committed at or in connection with the property, the landlord can use Ground 7A. This extension is powerful in drug-related cases — a conviction of a drug dealer who used the rented property as a base can support Ground 7A possession proceedings against the tenant
• Evidence the landlord needs: To plead Ground 7A, the landlord needs to establish: (1) a conviction of the relevant person for a Schedule 2A offence (a certificate of conviction from the court is the most direct evidence; press reports or police disclosure may also support the landlord's case); (2) the date of the conviction (Ground 7A is only available once the conviction has been entered — a caution, charge, or arrest is not sufficient); (3) the identity of the convicted person and their connection to the property (tenant; household member; visitor). The conviction must be a conviction in a court of competent jurisdiction — a police caution is not a conviction for Ground 7A purposes. Once the conviction is proved, the court must make the possession order — there is no further burden on the landlord to prove that it is 'reasonable' to order possession

Notice requirements and serving a Ground 7A Section 8 notice

Ground 7A requires a Section 8 notice to be served before possession proceedings are issued. The notice requirements are strict:

• Notice period — 2 weeks: The notice period for Ground 7A is 2 weeks. The landlord must serve a valid Section 8 notice specifying Ground 7A and giving the tenant at least 14 days' notice of the date on or after which possession proceedings may be issued. The notice must be on the prescribed form (Form 3 — Notice Seeking Possession of a Property Let on an Assured Tenancy or an Assured Agricultural Occupancy) and must state Ground 7A specifically. Where both Ground 7A and Ground 14 are pleaded, both must be stated in the same Section 8 notice
• Notice can be dispensed with — Ground 14 immediately available: Unlike Ground 7A, Ground 14 (anti-social behaviour — discretionary) allows the landlord to issue possession proceedings immediately, without a notice period, where the court considers it just and equitable to dispense with notice. Ground 7A requires the 2-week notice period and cannot be dispensed with in the same way. The practical advantage of using Ground 7A alongside Ground 14 in the same Section 8 notice is that Ground 14 allows immediate court proceedings (if the court dispenses with notice), while Ground 7A provides the mandatory element once the conviction is proved
• Service of the notice: The Section 8 notice must be validly served on the tenant using a permitted method — in person; by first class post (service is treated as occurring 2 clear days after posting); or by any other method authorised by the tenancy agreement. For post-RRA 2025 tenancies, electronic service may be available if the tenancy agreement provides for it. The landlord must keep evidence of service — a certificate of service or recorded delivery receipt — because the tenant may challenge whether the notice was served at all or whether it complied with formalities
• Post-RRA 2025 notice requirements: Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (in force 1 May 2026), the Section 8 notice for assured tenancies uses updated prescribed forms. Ground 7A remains available and mandatory after 1 May 2026 for all assured tenancies. The notice period remains 2 weeks. Landlords should ensure they use the correct post-RRA 2025 Form 3 for notices served after 1 May 2026 — using the old form may make the notice invalid. The RRA 2025 did not change the substance of Ground 7A — only the prescribed form used to serve it

Ground 7A strategy — using it alongside Ground 14 for maximum effectiveness

In serious criminal or ASB situations, landlords should consider pleading Ground 7A alongside Ground 14 and other available grounds in the same Section 8 notice. This multi-ground strategy provides maximum flexibility:

• Ground 14 alongside Ground 7A: Ground 14 (anti-social behaviour — discretionary) requires no conviction — it can be used where the tenant or a household member has been guilty of conduct causing or likely to cause a nuisance or annoyance, or has used the property for immoral or illegal purposes. Where a conviction for a Schedule 2A offence is available, pleading both Ground 14 and Ground 7A maximises the landlord's position: Ground 14 provides the discretionary element and may be available more quickly (where the court dispenses with the notice period); Ground 7A provides the mandatory element once the conviction is proved at the court hearing. Pleading both grounds means the court will make a possession order on Ground 7A if the conviction is established, without needing to consider reasonableness
• Rent arrears grounds — Grounds 8 and 8a alongside Ground 7A: In cases where the criminal behaviour has also resulted in rent arrears (tenant imprisoned; stop paying rent during criminal proceedings), pleading Grounds 8 and 8a (mandatory rent arrears grounds) alongside Ground 7A ensures the landlord has possession grounds covering both the criminal behaviour and the financial arrears. Courts see mandatory grounds favourably — having two independent mandatory grounds (7A and 8) before the court makes a possession order near inevitable. The Section 8 notice should specify all grounds relied upon
• Timing — act promptly on conviction: Once the tenant's conviction (or a relevant household member's conviction) is entered, the landlord should act promptly. The landlord should serve the Ground 7A Section 8 notice immediately after the conviction — ideally on the day of sentencing or within days. Delay in serving notice allows the tenant to remain in the property and may complicate the landlord's position (particularly where insurance cover for the property may be at risk if a convicted criminal remains). Emergency measures — closure orders; emergency possession hearings — may also be available in extreme cases
• Interaction with breathing space and other moratoria: Where the convicted tenant has entered breathing space (Debt Respite Scheme), the moratorium applies only to arrears debt — it does not prevent the landlord serving a Section 8 Ground 7A notice (which is a criminal conviction ground, not an arrears ground). Similarly, a Ground 14 (ASB) or Ground 7A notice is unaffected by breathing space. The landlord should proceed with Ground 7A possession proceedings even if the tenant is in breathing space for rent arrears — the two matters are independent. However, the landlord should take advice on whether the specific facts of the case allow immediate proceedings or whether the 2-week notice must expire first

Frequently asked questions