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Free preparation worksheet

Form 6A preparation worksheet

A free Word worksheet to gather the details you'll transfer into the official GOV.UK Form 6A (the prescribed Section 21 notice under HA 1988 s.21). Field-gathering only — this is not the prescribed notice.

Do not serve this document on a tenant.

The official prescribed Form 6A is published by GOV.UK and only that wording (or a document setting out the same information, per SI 2015/1646 reg. 4(2)) is legally valid. Use this worksheet to prepare the details (parties, dates, court-deadline calculations) you will transfer into the GOV.UK form before serving. Defective Section 21 notices fail at the court accelerated-possession stage.

Section 21 was abolished on 1 May 2026. No new Form 6A can be served after 30 April 2026. The worksheet is only relevant for landlords still working through Section 21 notices served before that date — the transitional applicable period ends with a hard backstop of 31 July 2026 for starting court possession proceedings.

Open the official GOV.UK Form 6A ↗Download preparation worksheet (.docx)

What this worksheet does

It's a one-page Word file with the fields the GOV.UK Form 6A asks for: tenant + landlord names, property address, tenancy start date, notice service date, possession date specified in the notice, and the transitional-period court-deadline calculation under RRA 2025 Sch 6 para 4(2). Fill it in, then transfer the values into the official GOV.UK form when you serve.

It does not contain the prescribed legal wording of the notice itself. That wording belongs on the GOV.UK form and changes when GOV.UK updates the form — we don't track those changes here.

The three pre-service requirements

A Section 21 notice cannot be served unless all three of these are met before service. Two are prescribed by SI 2015/1646 reg. 2; the third (deposit) sits in Housing Act 2004 s.215.

  • Deposit protected in an approved scheme AND prescribed information served on the tenant (Housing Act 2004 s.215(1) + s.215(1A)).
  • Gas safety certificate provided to the tenant (Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 reg. 36(6) or (7)).
  • EPC provided to the tenant free of charge (Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 reg. 6(5)).

The 31 July 2026 court backstop

Under RRA 2025 Sch 6 para 4(2), proceedings for an order for possession on a Form 6A served before 1 May 2026 cannot be begun after the end of the applicable period. That period is the earlier of two dates:

  • 6 months from the date the notice was given, OR
  • 3 months from commencement (= 31 July 2026).

A separate “longer-notice” rule applies where the date specified in the notice is more than 2 months after service (HA 1988 s.21(4EA), inserted by RRA 2025 Sch 6 para 4(2)) — the 6-month rule is replaced by “4 months from the date specified”. Use the worksheet to capture both calculations, then bind to the earlier of the two.

For the full deadline-per-branch walkthrough, see the dedicated Form 6A transition guide (publishes 2026-05-18 alongside this landing page).

Disclaimer: this worksheet is a preparation aid only. It is not the prescribed Form 6A and must not be served. Always complete and serve the current GOV.UK-published Form 6A (or a document setting out the same information per SI 2015/1646 reg. 4(2)). Not legal advice — possession proceedings vary by facts; for contested notices, consult a qualified housing solicitor.