COUNCIL HOUSING RENT INCREASE TO BE CONSIDERED

Stoke-on-Trent City Council will consider a 5.9% increase in council housing rent for 2009 at the full city council meeting on 29 January 2009. The average national guideline rent increase will be 6.2%, and this increase will affect around 37.5% of council households who don’t receive full housing benefit.

This increase is in line with the Government’s Rent Restructuring Formula, which is designed to bring council housing rent in line with housing associations by 2025.

Councillor Joan Bell, portfolio holder for community safety, said: “The proposed rent increase is in accordance with government guidance, and it is essential that the city council comply with the national guidelines. This will allow us to maximise housing subsidy and housing benefit arrangements for the city.

“We are committed to try to make sure everyone in a council property is able to have affordable quality housing as we move into 2009. This increase is something that is happening nationwide and we are trying to ensure it is applied as fairly as possible while also meeting the targets the Government has set down.”

The rent rise will be considered by the improving communities overview and scrutiny committee on 15 January. Councillor David Conway, chair of the committee, said: “The committee will try and make sure that this increase reflects fairly on each resident within the city. The recommendations we make will hopefully be able to ensure that the city council has a complete picture of what this will mean for all council tenants.

“The rise is below the national average increase and the average rent for affordable properties in Stoke-on-Trent compares favourably with our near neighbours.

“I would like to reassure all our council tenants that we will continue to invest in housing, and even though our Decent Homes scheme ends in 2010, we have put in place a planned maintenance programme beyond that.”