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# Council set to increase social housing rents
- URL: https://www.ipswich.co.uk/council-set-to-increase-social-housing-rents/
- Published: 2024-10-11T04:41:11.000Z
- Updated: 2026-03-16T15:33:12.000Z
- Description: Ipswich Borough Council has awarded Ark Consultancy a £14,000 contract to review its approach to service charges and rent flexibility for social housing.
- Author: Oliver Rouane-Williams
- Tags: News, Housing & Urban Development, Councils, #article, Ipswich Borough Council, #Import 2026-03-16 14:46

**The big picture:** The council must balance affordable rents with the increasing costs of maintaining and developing social housing. Current social council rents in Ipswich are around 40% of market rent, at the bottom of the 40-60% range set by national standards.

**Why it matters:** The review could increase rent for new tenants, potentially impacting affordability for those seeking social housing in Ipswich.

**Key details:**

- The government allows councils to increase rents for new tenants by up to 5% above the formula rent for general needs tenancies or 10% for supported housing.
- The council proposes a new Rent and Service Charge Policy to implement these increases.
- The contract with Ark Consultancy is for an initial 12-month term, with an option to extend for another 12 months.

**Between the lines:** The council faced challenges in awarding this contract:

- An initial procurement exercise in August 2024 failed when two tenders received were non-compliant.
- The council then waived normal competitive purchasing requirements to award the contract directly to Ark Consultancy.

**What they're saying:** The council stated that "further delay in awarding a contract would be likely to lead to financial loss and it is economically in the best interests of the Council to proceed with an award without further delay."

**The bottom line:** According to the council, this review comes as the costs of maintaining council housing, including fire and building safety standards, have "increased significantly and continue to increase."

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