Does a landlord give notice for end of tenancy agreement?

Tony, this is quite basic (have you seen the news this week?). Residential tenancies do not just end when the fixed term is up. The landlord has to serve notice (s21) which is a minimum of two months.

You can only serve notice if you have done the correct pre-commencement compliance.

I suggest you serve notice now, assuming you are allowed to do so. This can run alongside the s8 notice. If the tenant pays the rent then you can’t rely on s8, so will need s21.

What does your tenancy agreement state, it should be in there.

2 months notice should be given by serving a s21 Notice of Possession, which can run alongside a s8. A s21 has a validity of 6 months.

If the tenant owes money or/and any of the other s8 17 Grounds are applicable serve that as well. Are you only relying on one s8 Ground (or several?) as if the tenant pays up the rent owed but one day less than 2 months rent the s8 will fail.

Serve the s 21 as well. May take slightly longer but often works out cheaper including lost rent

Thanks all for your useful comments. I have asked my solicitor the same question so will wait to hear back from her.

Serve both s8 and s21. Make the tenant understand that if they keep up with rent (or at least keep arrears to a minimum, less than 2 months), they may be able to stay longer, otherwise it will mean homelessness, sofa surfing, a disused army barrack or a cruise ship courtesy of the Council etc. Given the current pressures on housing, it is unlikely they will find anywhere decent without references. That may help them realise their own plight and start to prioritise rent. If tenant is on Universal Credit, you can also apply to DWP for the money, incl arrears to be paid directly to you. For you, a long term tenant with a small amount of arrears is better than a 6 month court battle with 6-8 months of no rent.