# Do these works need a Section 20 consultation? Four questions to the schedule that applies > Four questions on what is being bought, the largest share, the urgency and public notice, leading to one of eight outcomes with the regulation behind each. - Page to cite: https://aeolookup.com/block-management/do-these-works-need-section-20-consultation-four-questions/ - Publisher: AEO Lookup (https://aeolookup.com/) - Section: Block and property managers, Section 20 and major works - Published 2 October 2026 - Key fact: We wrote this questionnaire of 4 questions and 8 outcomes from the rules set out in 5 of our guides and the sources each outcome names. Two of the eight outcomes need no consultation and two lead to a dispensation application; the other four each name the schedule or part of the 2003 Regulations that applies. Only the first question is asked on every route. - Sources: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, sections 19 and 20ZA(2); Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulation 3; read 2 October 2026; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 2(2), 4 and 6, read 2 October 2026; Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, sections 20 and 20ZA; First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Fees Order 2013, Schedule 1, item 2.2; read 2 October 2026; Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 20ZA; 2003 Regulations, regulation 2; First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Fees Order 2013, Schedule 1, item 2.2; read 2 October 2026; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 2, 5(2) and 7(4)(a), Schedule 2 and Schedule 4 Part 1, read 2 October 2026; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulation 7(1) and Schedule 3, read 2 October 2026; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 4 and 5(1) and Schedule 1, read 2 October 2026; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 6 and 7(4)(b) and Schedule 4 Part 2, read 2 October 2026; each outcome names its source, and the linked guide shows the working. A contractor's quote or a new contract is on the desk, and the first thing to settle is which consultation, if any, the law requires before the client commits. Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 has two limits, £250 for works and £100 a year for a long-term agreement, and the 2003 Regulations for England have four schedules, each for a different kind of job. This questionnaire asks what is being bought, whether any one leaseholder's share passes the limit, whether the job can wait and whether public notice is required. It gives the route that applies, with the regulation behind it, as we read the Act and the Regulations on 2 October 2026. **Free tool on the page:** Section 20: which consultation applies. It runs in the browser at https://aeolookup.com/block-management/do-these-works-need-section-20-consultation-four-questions/#tool and asks for no sign-up. ## The questions, and why each is asked **1. What is the landlord, or the agent on its behalf, about to pay for?** Section 20 covers qualifying works, meaning works on a building or other premises, and qualifying long-term agreements, meaning agreements for a term of more than twelve months. Regulation 3 takes contracts of employment out of the second group. **2. Will any one leaseholder's share pass the limit: £250 for works, or £100 in a year under an agreement?** Regulation 6 sets the limit for works at a contribution of more than £250 by any tenant. Regulation 4 sets it for agreements at more than £100 in an accounting period. Test the largest share, with VAT. This question appears only when an earlier answer makes it relevant. **3. Can the job wait for the consultation periods before the client commits to it?** Each notice period is 30 days beginning with the date of the notice. Without consultation each contribution is capped, unless the tribunal dispenses with the requirements under section 20ZA. This question appears only when an earlier answer makes it relevant. **4. Does this contract have to be advertised by public notice under the Procurement Act 2023?** The Regulations define public notice as notice published pursuant to the Procurement Act 2023. Where it is required, leaseholders are not invited to nominate a contractor, and a different schedule applies. This question appears only when an earlier answer makes it relevant. ## Every outcome, and the rule behind it ### No Section 20 consultation: outside both definitions Reached when: "What is the landlord, or the agent on its behalf, about to pay for?" answered "A service contract for 12 months or less" or "A contract of employment, such as a caretaker's". Section 20 applies to qualifying works, which are works on a building or other premises, and to qualifying long-term agreements, which are agreements for a term of more than twelve months. A service contract for twelve months or less is neither. Regulation 3 of the 2003 Regulations says a contract of employment is not a qualifying long-term agreement, however long it runs. The cost must still be reasonably incurred under section 19 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. - Note on the file why the contract is outside section 20, with its start and end dates. - If works on the building are added to the contract later, test those works against the £250 limit. Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, sections 19 and 20ZA(2); Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulation 3; read 2 October 2026. The working is in [The Section 20 consultation process, stage by stage, with what each notice must say](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-consultation-process-stages-managing-agents/). ### Under the limit: no consultation needed for this cost Reached when: "Will any one leaseholder's share pass the limit: £250 for works, or £100 in a year under an agreement?" answered "No, every share is at or under the limit". Section 20 applies to works only where any one leaseholder's contribution would be more than £250 (regulation 6 of the 2003 Regulations), and to a long-term agreement only where any one leaseholder's contribution in an accounting period would be more than £100 (regulation 4). If the largest share is at or under the limit, no consultation is required. The test is the largest share under the leases, with VAT, not the average across the block. - Work out the largest single share from the lease percentages, not by dividing by the number of flats. - Keep the calculation on the job file with the quote and the date. - Test again if the price rises or extra work is added to the same job. Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 2(2), 4 and 6, read 2 October 2026. The working is in [Service charge apportionment calculator](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/service-charge-apportionment-calculator-per-flat/). ### Already done without consultation: capped unless the tribunal dispenses Reached when: "Can the job wait for the consultation periods before the client commits to it?" answered "It has already started or been done without consultation". Where the consultation requirements were not met, section 20 limits each leaseholder's contribution to £250 for works, or £100 in an accounting period for a long-term agreement. The First-tier Tribunal can dispense with the requirements under section 20ZA, before or after the event, if satisfied that it is reasonable. The application goes on form Leasehold 5 and costs £200 to issue and £300 if a hearing is listed, on the fees in force from 13 July 2026. Since Daejan v Benson in 2013 the question is what prejudice the leaseholders suffered. - Tell the client in writing what the cap leaves unrecovered if dispensation is refused. - Write to every leaseholder now with what was done, why and what it cost, and invite observations. - Apply on form Leasehold 5, naming everyone who pays the service charge as a respondent. Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, sections 20 and 20ZA; First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Fees Order 2013, Schedule 1, item 2.2; read 2 October 2026. The working is in [Section 20 dispensation](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-dispensation-application-section-20za/). ### Urgent: consult as far as time allows and apply for dispensation Reached when: "Can the job wait for the consultation periods before the client commits to it?" answered "No, it is urgent and has not started". The two consultation periods are 30 days each, so a full consultation takes at least 60 days. Where the job cannot wait that long, the route is an application to the First-tier Tribunal under section 20ZA to dispense with all or any of the requirements. It costs £200 to issue and £300 if a hearing is listed, on the fees in force from 13 July 2026. The tribunal looks at how far leaseholders were prejudiced by the missing steps, so a shortened consultation, with a few days for replies, is evidence that little was lost. - Record why the job cannot wait: photographs, the contractor's report and the date the defect was found. - Write to every leaseholder the same day with the works, the cost and a date for observations. - Get the estimates that time allows, and note why if there is only one. - Apply on form Leasehold 5 and send a copy of the application to the leaseholders. Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 20ZA; 2003 Regulations, regulation 2; First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) Fees Order 2013, Schedule 1, item 2.2; read 2 October 2026. The working is in [Section 20 dispensation](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-dispensation-application-section-20za/). ### Public notice required: Schedule 2, or Part 1 of Schedule 4 Reached when: "Does this contract have to be advertised by public notice under the Procurement Act 2023?" answered "Yes, public notice is required". Where public notice of the contract is required, a long-term agreement is consulted on under Schedule 2 of the 2003 Regulations, and one-off works under Part 1 of Schedule 4. The notice of intention must say that leaseholders are not invited to nominate a contractor because public notice is to be given. Each notice still carries a 30-day period for observations, and the landlord must answer each observation on its proposal in writing within 21 days of receiving it. - Confirm with the client's procurement adviser that public notice is required for this contract. - State in the notice of intention why no nominations are invited. - Reply in writing to each observation on the proposal within 21 days of receiving it. Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 2, 5(2) and 7(4)(a), Schedule 2 and Schedule 4 Part 1, read 2 October 2026. The working is in [The Section 20 consultation process, stage by stage, with what each notice must say](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-consultation-process-stages-managing-agents/). ### Schedule 3: one notice and one 30-day period Reached when: "What is the landlord, or the agent on its behalf, about to pay for?" answered "Works under a long-term agreement that section 20 applies to". Works that are the subject of a qualifying long-term agreement to which section 20 applies are consulted on under Schedule 3 of the 2003 Regulations. There is one notice of intention. It describes the works, gives the landlord's reasons, states the total estimated expenditure and invites written observations within 30 days beginning with the date of the notice. There is no estimates stage and no invitation to nominate a contractor. The landlord must have regard to the observations and answer each one in writing within 21 days of receiving it. - Check that the agreement itself was consulted on when it was made; its £100 a year cap is a separate test. - Give the total estimated cost of the works in the notice, with VAT. - Diarise the last day for observations: day 30, counting the date of the notice as day 1. - Answer each observation in writing within 21 days of receiving it. Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulation 7(1) and Schedule 3, read 2 October 2026. The working is in [Section 20 checker](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-consultation-threshold-and-timetable-checker/). ### Schedule 1: two notices of 30 days each before the agreement is signed Reached when: "What is the landlord, or the agent on its behalf, about to pay for?" answered "A new contract that will run for more than 12 months". A qualifying long-term agreement where no public notice is required is consulted on under Schedule 1 of the 2003 Regulations. A notice of intention invites observations and nominations within 30 days. The landlord then prepares at least two proposals, one of them from a person wholly unconnected with it, and gives notice of them with a second 30 days for observations. Within 21 days of entering the agreement it gives written reasons, unless the agreement is with a nominated person or the one who gave the lowest estimate. - Serve the notice of intention on every leaseholder and any recognised tenants' association. - Prepare at least two proposals and state the intended duration of the agreement in each. - Do not sign until the second 30 days has ended and the observations have been considered. Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 4 and 5(1) and Schedule 1, read 2 October 2026. The working is in [The Section 20 consultation process, stage by stage, with what each notice must say](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-consultation-process-stages-managing-agents/). ### Schedule 4 Part 2: two notices and at least 60 days before the contract Reached when: any other set of answers. One-off works where any leaseholder would pay more than £250, with no public notice required, are consulted on under Part 2 of Schedule 4 to the 2003 Regulations. The notice of intention invites observations and nominations within 30 days. The statement of estimates, with at least two estimates and one from a person wholly unconnected with the landlord, opens a second 30 days. If the contract goes to anyone other than a nominated person or the lowest estimate, written reasons are due within 21 days of entering it. - Serve the notice of intention on every leaseholder and any recognised tenants' association. - Seek an estimate from any contractor a leaseholder or the association nominates. - Summarise the observations and your replies in the statement of estimates. - Diarise the earliest contract date: a first notice dated 6 October 2026 gives 5 December 2026. Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003, regulations 6 and 7(4)(b) and Schedule 4 Part 2, read 2 October 2026. The working is in [Section 20 consultation checklist for major works](https://aeolookup.com/block-management/section-20-consultation-checklist-major-works-notice-to-contract/). ## How to use the result Run it before the order is placed, using the lease with the largest share and the price with VAT. If the result is a schedule, the linked guide sets out what each notice must say, and our Section 20 checker turns the 30-day periods into dates. If it is a dispensation outcome, write to the leaseholders the same day and keep the evidence of why the job could not wait. Put the result on the job file with its date, because a tribunal looking at the works years later will ask how the route was chosen. Run it again if the price rises: a job that started under the limit can pass it. The outcome applies the rule to the answers given; it cannot see the facts behind them. Where an answer is a judgement, or the facts are unusual, the outcome may not fit. This page is general information, not legal advice. Overlyft ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/ours-badge.png) sets up AI assistants for block and property managers: they prepare drafts for a person to approve. None of these outcomes depends on them. --- ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/owner-line.png) General information for UK small firms, not legal, tax or financial advice.