Conclusion 9

Rental agreements need to be based on a common understanding between the tenants and landlord about what is being rented and how much it costs.13 The data that NHS Property Services holds on its properties and tenants has improved but this data is liable to degrade if tenants do not inform it of changes to the space they use. The absence of leases means that there is no enforceable process to ensure that tenants inform NHS Property Services of changes to the space they use.14 NHS Property Services recognises that it needs to continue to improve the accuracy of its data. However, without effective powers of enforcement, it needs national bodies to do more to ensure that tenants engage, agree the supporting data and sign rental agreements. NHS Property Services told us that if it gets the data right and puts tenant-friendly draft documents in front of occupiers, it would be helpful if there were some sort of requirement that tenants enter into those agreements.15