Tenants Rent and Charges Review 2026

From April, your rent will increase by 4.8%. This increase is calculated in line with national rent rules set by the Regulator of Social Housing, which are linked to inflation (the Consumer Prices Index from September) plus 1%. Using the September inflation figure ensures rent changes are set consistently and in advance each year.

Inflation can rise or fall over time and the September inflation figure was higher than in recent years, which is reflected in this year’s rent increase.  

CPI stands for Consumer Price Index which measures the average change from month to month in the prices of goods and services purchased by most households in the UK.

The rent you pay helps us to continue repairing and improving homes, building new affordable homes, investing in neighbourhoods and providing essential services.

We know many people are under financial pressure. If you’re struggling, help is available through our Wellbeing Fund and Successful Tenancies support, including money, benefits and employment advice.
 

Find out more here.

Please note: 

• If you have a Social Rent tenancy agreement, this increase only applies to the rent you pay for your home.
• If you have an Affordable Rent tenancy agreement, this increase applies to both the affordable rent you pay for your home and any Communal Service Charges you need to pay as listed in your annual rent and service charge review letter.  

The social rent you pay (either weekly or monthly) is calculated based on the social housing rent formula and inflation. This formula considers factors such as the size, location, and value of your home, as well as local income levels. 

The affordable rent you pay (either weekly or per calendar month) is typically up to 80% of the market rent charged by private landlords for a similar home in the same area and inflation. This calculation considers factors such as its size and location. 

Your rent is the amount we charge you to live in your home. It also covers the cost of insuring the basic structure of your home or building. It does not cover insurance for your personal belongings. 

To ensure your furniture, carpets and personal belongings are covered, we strongly recommend that you get home contents insurance. 

 You can find more information here. 

Your rent charge includes the amount we charge you to live in your home, inclusive of any Communal Service Charges. You will need to pay any Other charges.  

It also covers the cost of insuring the basic structure of your home or building. It does not cover insurance for your personal belongings. 
 
To ensure your furniture, carpets and personal belongings are covered, we strongly recommend that you get home contents insurance. 

You can find more information here.

In the first year of your tenancy, we increase your rent once. After that, we review it every year. Any changes to service charges will happen at the same time. We’ll give you one month’s written notice of any changes. 

Universal Credit 

If you receive Universal Credit, please access your online DWP journal, select ‘confirm your housing costs’ and enter the new figures outlined in this letter. Failure to report changes may result in your housing costs being incorrectly assessed.  

Please only update your journal on or after the increase date and when you receive a ‘to-do’ notification from Universal Credit. 

Housing Benefit 

If you receive Housing Benefit directly and then pay us, you will need to inform your local authority of the change in your rent/charges. If your Housing Benefit is paid directly to us, we will update the local authority and they will send you a new award letter.  

It’s your responsibility to check that the details are correct and if there are any mistakes, contact your local authority to resolve the issue. 

Direct Debit 

If you pay by Direct Debit, you don't need to take any action. You will soon receive a letter from Allpay confirming the new amount to be collected. If you haven't received this letter by 31 March 2026, please let us know. 

Standing Order 

If you pay by Standing Order, you will need to contact your bank or building society and ask them to update your payment to the new amount starting from April 2026. 

It's always best to keep any documentation we send you in a safe place however that's not a problem.  Send an email to rents@platformhg.com and we can arrange for a copy letter to be sent to you. 

Communal Service Charges are for services provided in communal areas such as communal grounds maintenance or the cleaning of communal corridors.

Personal/Other charges are for specific services normally delivered into a customer's home. For example, if water is supplied to a scheme through one shared bill, Platform pays the full amount and then divides the cost fairly between all customers living there.

A charge is the amount you pay towards the cost of providing a service, including heating, electricity, cleaning, grounds maintenance, and door entry systems.

If you pay Communal Service Charges or Personal/Other charges, your annual rent review letter will include a breakdown of these charges. 

Here are some examples of what may be included in your charge: 

• Communal cleaning/caretaking: Cleaning and maintaining shared areas like halls, stairs, and rubbish chutes.
• Communal grounds maintenance: Tasks like mowing the grass, weeding and litter picking.
• Communal door access system: Costs for maintaining and repairing the entry phone systems in buildings.
• Admin fee: Costs of administration of charges, production of correspondence, general accountancy and costs incurred in relation to the procurement and management of contracts.
• Communal electricity: Costs for lighting in shared communal areas, including replacing lightbulbs. Costs of providing an electricity supply to communal areas.
• Communal water: Costs from utility providers for the water supply to communal areas, where supply is purchased by Platform.
• Communal lifts: Maintenance and repairs for lifts in the building.
• Concierge: Costs of providing concierge services in the building. 

If we deliver a service that is shared by several customers, your charge is calculated by dividing the total cost between everyone who has use of or benefits from it. 

A charge is based on the anticipate cost to provide the service to you. Costs can go up or down depending on inflation and market conditions, and we work hard to get the best value for money from our contractors and manage services efficiently.  

Each year we review the Communal Service Charges and personal/Other charges to make sure you only pay for the services you receive and that each service or personal charge is accurate and fair. 

If you pay for any charges, they are listed in the charges section of your annual rent review letter. 
 

If you are a tenant and are renting your home from us, the day-to-day repairs costs of your home are included in your rent. Communal repair costs are included in your charges. 

Please note that Platform Housing Group considers all "Communal Service Charges" to be eligible for Housing Benefit or Universal Credit. We believe that the "personal/Other charges" are likely to be classed as ineligible; however, your local authority (for Housing Benefit) or the Department for Work and Pensions (for Universal Credit) may make a different determination. 

The final decision on the eligibility of each individual charge rests with the relevant authority.

If you claim Housing Benefit or Universal Credit some service charges are covered within your Housing Benefit or Universal Credit payment. 

Ineligible charges are not covered by Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, so you need to pay for these.  

Which charges are eligible or ineligible is determined by your local authority (for Housing Benefit) or Department of Work and Pensions (for Universal Credit).  

Linked below is a list of services that includes all the charge headings, along with easy read descriptions.

Click here to download the table

If you have any queries or concerns about any of the services you receive, please call our Customer Hub on 0333 200 7304 or email info@platformhg.com. 

Whether we provide your services or employ contractors to deliver them on our behalf, we always aim to deliver the very best that we can.  

If you have any queries or concerns about any of the services you receive, please call our Customer Hub on 0333 200 7304 or email info@platformhg.com.