Lewisham
Verified local trades for Lewisham
London Heroes covers Lewisham around the clock. Every professional is identity-checked by a human, has their credentials verified against evidence and watched for expiry, and every payment is held securely until you confirm the work is done.
Landlord licensing in Lewisham
Mandatory HMO licensing applies across England. Lewisham may also operate additional or selective licensing.
- Selective licensing
- In operation. Selective licensing came into effect on 1 July 2024 and covers nearly all privately rented properties in the borough that are not already covered by HMO licensing — around 20,000 properties. Telegraph Hill and parts of Blackheath are excluded from the designated area. The statutory designation notice states it is legally three named designations covering 16 pre-May-2022 wards — Designation 1: Brockley, Catford South, Lewisham Central, New Cross, Perry Vale, Rushey Green. Designation 2: Crofton Park, Evelyn, Ladywell, Lee Green, Sydenham. Designation 3: Bellingham, Downham, Forest Hill, Grove Park, Whitefoot — and states verbatim: 'The Designations were made on 08.03.2023 ... On 30.11.2023 the Secretary of State confirmed the Designations, and the Designations shall come into force on 01.07.2024 ... They shall cease to have effect on 01.07.2029.' Lewisham publishes an interactive map: landlords can check whether a property is in scope by selecting 'Selective Licensable Area' from the Community Services menu.Coverage: Borough-wide except Telegraph Hill and parts of BlackheathDesignated: Made 8 March 2023; confirmed by the Secretary of State 30 November 2023; in force from 1 July 2024; ceases to have effect 1 July 2029 — per the statutory designation notice.
- Additional HMO licensing
- In operation. Borough-wide additional HMO licensing. The council's page states the additional scheme 'came into force on Tuesday 5 April 2022' and applies to any HMO in Lewisham not captured by the national mandatory scheme, other than those specifically excluded — typically three or four unrelated occupants sharing facilities, purpose-built flats with three or more unrelated sharers, and lodger arrangements with more than two tenants. Properties with two sharers and ordinary family homes are excluded. Licences are usually granted for five years. The statutory designation notice states verbatim: 'Designation shall come into force on 5 April 2022 ... will cease to have effect on 4 April 2027 (not more than five years).'Coverage: Borough-wideDesignated: In force from 5 April 2022; ceases to have effect 4 April 2027 — per the statutory designation notice.
Lewisham is one of the most comprehensively licensed boroughs in London — between mandatory, borough-wide additional and near-borough-wide selective licensing, most private rented homes need a licence. The stated selective licensing fee is '£160 upon application and £480 upon granting', with discounts for early applications, accredited landlords and eligible charities applied to the second payment. The selective designation is legally three named designations across 16 wards rather than a single map boundary (see the ward list in the selective scheme's own detail above) — landlords near Telegraph Hill or Blackheath should check the interactive map rather than assume.
Checked against the council’s own pages on 21 July 2026. Licensing schemes are five-year designations that expire and get redesignated on their own timetables — always confirm on LewishamCouncil’s licensing pages before applying or paying.
What Lewisham is built of — and what that means for repairs
Lewisham is dominated by Victorian and Edwardian terraces and semis across Brockley, Ladywell, Forest Hill and Catford, much of it subdivided into flats and maisonettes. Large post-war council estates — a result of extensive wartime bomb damage and subsequent redevelopment — sit alongside this, and there is significant recent high-density apartment development around Lewisham town centre, Deptford and Surrey Quays fringes. Interwar semis are common in the southern parts of the borough around Grove Park and Downham.
Common repair issues in Lewisham
- Solid-wall damp, penetrating damp at parapet and valley gutters, and decayed timber in Victorian terraces
- Split houses and maisonettes with poor fire separation between floors and shared escape routes — the main focus of the additional licensing regime
- Failing rear-addition flat roofs and valley gutters on 'butterfly' roof terraces, a common source of leaks
- Subsidence and heave risk on London Clay, worsened by mature street trees and by seasonal shrink-swell
- Communal heating, ageing risers and building-safety remediation in post-war and newer high-rise blocks
- Older electrical installations and heating systems that must be brought up to licence-condition standards across a very large licensed stock
Areas we cover in Lewisham
- Lewisham
- Deptford
- New Cross
- Brockley
- Forest Hill
- Catford
- Sydenham
- Blackheath
- Ladywell
- Downham
Nearby boroughs
London Heroes covers every neighbouring borough the same way — verified trades, day or night.
Verified Heroes
Every Hero's identity, insurance and trade credentials are checked before they can take work — and expiry-tracked afterwards.
Live Hero Passport
See exactly which checks a Hero has passed, when we last checked, and when each credential expires.
Secure payments
Payments are handled through the platform with a full record of every transaction. No cash-in-hand ambiguity.
Local & accountable
A registered London company with a real complaints process — not an anonymous listings site.
Services in Lewisham
Ordered for what’s common in Lewisham’s housing — every service is available to book here, day or night.
Browse all servicesStraight answers for Lewisham
How do I find a verified plumber or electrician in Lewisham?
Describe the job at londonheroes.co.uk/request. Every professional on London Heroes has passed a human-reviewed identity check, holds verified credentials (Gas Safe for gas work, competent-person scheme membership for electrical work, public liability insurance) displayed live on their public Hero Passport, and is monitored daily for credential expiry. London Heroes covers Lewisham around the clock.
How does payment protection work on London Heroes?
You pay when you book, but the money is held securely and only released to the tradesperson when you confirm the work is complete. If something goes wrong before you confirm, raising a dispute freezes the money automatically while a named member of the team investigates — outcomes include partial or full refund. The platform fee is a transparent 10%, paid by the professional.
Are the tradespeople on London Heroes vetted?
Yes — and by a human, not an algorithm. Verification includes photographic ID, a selfie holding the document, business registration for limited companies, and evidence for every declared credential. A lapsed credential shows as expired on the professional's public Passport rather than being hidden, and reviews can only be written by clients of real, paid jobs.
What does it cost to use London Heroes in Lewisham?
Nothing extra: you pay the professional's quoted price and no booking fees on top. The platform's 10% commission is paid by the professional out of the job price. Cancel before work starts and you receive a full refund.
Do landlords need a property licence in Lewisham?
Lewisham operates additional HMO licensing borough-wide until 4 April 2027 and selective licensing borough-wide except Telegraph Hill and parts of Blackheath until 1 July 2029. Mandatory HMO licensing applies across England regardless. Checked against Lewisham Council’s own pages on 21 July 2026 — confirm on the council’s website before applying, as designations expire and are renewed on their own timetables.
A trade professional in Lewisham?
Founding heroes get a live, public verification passport — identity, credentials and verified reviews on one page — plus payment-protected jobs at a straight 10%.