Rent Increase 2025/26 Consultation

In preparing the rent increase options for 2025/26 the housing service has been working with the accountancy department to update our working assumptions. This includes reviewing all of our costs and ensuring that our capital programme is affordable and aligns with the service priorities. 

The 2023-24 HRA Financial Business Plan review highlighted that the service has relatively low levels of debt and we have well-established maintenance programmes in place across our housing stock portfolio.

However, the HRA faces the same financial pressures as other sectors, our costs have increased and in order to continue to deliver the services which are important to you we require to review how we pay for these.  

The Scottish Government’s Social Housing Charter came into force in April 2012.  It has 16 outcomes that sets out the standards tenant should expect from their landlord.

When looking at the annual rent increase we need to pay particular attention to the following outcomes:

13: Value For Money

Social landlords manage all aspects of their businesses so that:

• tenants, owners and other customers receive services that provide continually improving value for the rent and other charges they pay.

14/15: Rents and Service Charges

Social landlords set rents and service charges in consultation with their tenants and other customers so that:

• a balance is struck between the level of services provided, the cost of the services, and how far current and prospective tenants and service users can afford them
• tenants get clear information on how rent and other money is spent, including details of any individual items of expenditure above thresholds agreed between landlords and tenants.

The rent setting process allows us to consult with tenants and has a focus on taking account of what current and prospective tenants and other customers are likely to be able to afford.

Performance

We want to continue to provide you with the very best service possible, some of the service highlights where we are performing best in class or above the Scottish average are: 

A significant increase in the number of properties meeting the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS): 93.54% (Scottish Avg 77.8%)​

Quick response times for repairs: emergency 3.99 hours (Scottish Avg 4.3 hours) and non-emergency 5.12 days (Scottish Avg 10 days)​

Substantial number of repairs completed ‘right first time’: 94.76% (Scottish Avg 88.8%)​

A reduction in current rent arrears due which is now below the Scottish Local Authority average: 2.27% (Scottish Avg 6.17%)​

A very low number of complaints received (complaints per 100 homes): 0.74 (Scottish Avg 4.57)​

91.56% of tenants are satisfied with the service they receive from the repairs team (Scottish Avg 86.75%)​

99.16% of new tenants are satisfied with the standard of their new home when they move in (Scottish Avg 86.25%)

Further information can be found in our 2023/24 landlord performance report

Our aim is to:

• Provide a quality and comprehensive housing management service
• Continue our investment into our existing homes, through the capital programme such as windows, doors, kitchens and roofs
• Continue to increase the supply of affordable housing in Clackmannanshire
• Continue to provide the current level of investment into repairs and maintenance
• Ensure our homes meet quality and energy efficiency standards
• Continue to provide community improvements

Risk  

Similar to last year, we continue to experience increased costs in relation to purchase of goods, energy supply and payroll/national insurance increases. 

The rent which you pay is required to fund these cost increases, if it is not able to do so then this may result in reduction or slowing in the services which we are able to provide and the investment which we are able to make in your homes.  

Despite us being in a strong position currently, the Housing Revenue Account is under considerable financial pressure and faces a high level of financial risk with expenditure increasing faster than income.​ 

Insufficient income puts at risk not only our capital planned investment but our ability to deliver the wider service. 

Rent increase can help mitigate against this risk. 

Assistance with rent 

For tenants who have their rent covered fully by HB or UC, any rent increase will be covered. 

Tenants on HB will automatically have their HB increased, but tenants on UC will have to update their journal with their new rent charge 

A significant number of our tenants receive some form of rent cost assistance, either Housing Benefit (HB) or Universal Credit (UC).  A total of 77% of our current tenants receive full or partial support with rent. 

Rent affordability 

Last year we shared with our work with Arneil Johnston and how they had carried out a rent affordability exercise.  This exercise is based on households not having to spend more than 35% of their disposable income on their rent.  We have carried out a similar exercise this year and can say based on the table below our rents are still very affordable.  All households with the exception of single adult households on UC are devoting less than 27%, and in many cases less than 20%.  Please note though, that those on UC should have their full housing costs met. 

	2025/26
	Affordability %
Property Size	National Living Wage (21 and over)	National Minimum Wage (18-20)	Living Wage	UC Single Person	UC Couple
1 bedroom - Single person 1* Multiplier	21%	26%	21%	32%
1 bedroom Couple (1.5x Multiplier)	14%	17%	14%		22%
2 bedroom - Single Person 1 * Multiplier	22%	27%	21%	33%
2 bedroom - Single Parent 1.3x Multiplier	17%	21%	16%	33%
2 bedroom - Couple Multiplier *1.5	15%	18%	14%		22%
3 bedroom - Couple Multiplier *1.5	15%	18%	15%		23%
3 bedroom - Family 1.8x Multiplier	12%	15%	12%		23%
4 bedroom - Couple 1.5x multiplier	15%	19%	15%		23%
4 bedroom - Family 1.8x Multiplier	13%	16%	12%		23%

Average Rents 2023/24. 

Clackmannanshire Council are 9th lowest from all local authorities and under the Scottish average, shown below in the table. 

Local Authority	Average Weekly Rent
Moray	£67.75
Stirling	£73.68
East Lothian	£76.73
Falkirk	£76.88
Angus	£78.28
South Lanarkshire	£79.27
Perth & Kinross	£79.74
East Ayrshire	£79.79
Clackmannanshire	£79.83
South Ayrshire	£80.60
North Lanarkshire	£80.87
North Ayrshire	£82.78
West Lothian	£83.39
Scotland Average	£84.55
Highland	£85.89
East Dunbartonshire	£86.05
Aberdeen City	£86.18
Sheltand Islands	£85.56
Midlothian	£87.65
Orkney Islands	£88.25
Dundee City	£88.45
West Dunbartonshire	£88.54
Renfrewshire	£89.89
Aberdeenshire	£95.08
East Renfrewshire	£95.20
Fife	£95.94
City of Edinburgh	£104.93

Options  

What will a 9.5% mean: 

• Reduced capital programme (home improvements) 
• Reduction in buy back/new supply activity  

What will a 10% mean: 

• Maintaining all current services that tenants receive 
• 5 year capital investment programme protected  
• Buy back funding to buy back around 20 properties per year 

What will a 10.5% mean: 

• Maintaining all current services that tenants receive 
• Buy back funding to buy back more than 20 properties per year 
• 5 year capital investment programme protected 
• Increase tenant improvement fund for locally agreed projects for tenant led improvements  

​Thank you reading through the above information, it hopefully provides you with some context to why we are considering these rent increase options. 

Your views and feedback are extremely important to us, and we would strongly encourage everyone to take part and have their say. We would be delighted if you could fill in our rent increase consultation, which will only take 5 minutes to fill in.