ARCH has been considering how it will respond to the current consultation on future council and housing association rent policy. It wants to hear members’ views on the option of reinstating a policy that tenants rents should converge to formula rents through an additional increase of up to perhaps £2 a week for tenants currently paying less than the formula rent for their home, on top of the basic increase of 1% more than Consumer Prices Index (CPI).

The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has published its analysis of the first set of TSMs submitted by social landlords. They show that 70% of tenants are generally satisfied with their landlord’s performance, feel that their home is safe and well-maintained, and that their landlord treats them with fairness and respect. But there is still plenty of room for improvement across the sector, with around one in five tenants not satisfied with their landlord’s service, and only one third of affected tenants satisfied with the way their landlord handles complaints.

On 30 July Angela Rayner committed the Government to develop a long-term housing strategy.

On 21 November, MHCLG launched a consultation on reforming the Right to Buy scheme.

Alongside the Budget, MHCLG has announced a consultation on a new rent settlement that would cap council and housing association rent increases at CPI + 1% for five years.