Council rent increase of almost three per cent increase agreed

Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council has agreed a rent increase of 2.7 per cent from next April, in a bid to fund improvements to council housing across the borough.

The average rent for a council home in the borough will increase from £92.01 to £94.49 per week.

In addition to the council dwelling rent increase, the council has also approved rises for other charges. These include a two per cent increase for communal facilities, parking spaces, cooking gas, and laundry facilities. Garage charges will rise by 10 per cent, and the cost of district heating, which affects properties with shared heating systems, will be set at 13.09 pence per kilowatt-hour.

The increase is part of the council’s 2025/26 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan, which outlines a £979 million investment in the borough’s housing stock over the next 30 years. The plan also includes an additional £35 million in investment over the next five years, to fund ongoing maintenance, repairs, and the purchase of new council homes.

During the last cabinet meeting on December 16, Councillor Sarah Allen said “This year’s business plan prioritises investment in three core areas…ensuring tenant’s homes are safe, decent and thermally efficient, and that’s supported by and additional £3m investment.

“Secondly, extending the benefits of council housing to more residents, by expanding…our housing delivery programme, and that is supported by an extra £37m.

“It’s about modernising the housing service, to enhance the customer experience, to improve productivity.”

Councillor Chris Read, leader of the council, added: ” We are rightly proud that we have built or bought 620 council houses over the last few years. We lose them at a much higher rate because of the discounts that are in place, and in order to continue to provide sustainable houses for generations to come, we need to be able to get that balance, moving the other way round .

“Those measures together will make a significant difference to the sustainability of affordable council housing in the borough.”