Gospel Oak tenants could see further rent increases on their homes due to a new government plan to allow social housing rents to converge with 'formula rents'.
The Gospel Oak District Management Committee (DMC) discussed the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) rent and budget setting for 2026/27 at a meeting on 27 November 2025. According to a report by Emma Cardoso, Strategic Finance Lead – Housing, the government has announced a 10-year rent settlement from April 2026, allowing rents to increase by CPI + 1% per annum. The government is also consulting on 'Rent Convergence', which would allow rents below 'formula rent' to increase by an additional amount each year.
According to the report pack, in Camden, 99% of properties are below formula rent, with an average gap of £19.49 per week. The report pack models potential rent increases for 2026/27 based on the current rent standard of CPI (3.8% as of September 2025) plus 1%, which would allow a maximum increase of 4.8%. The report pack also models the impact of rent convergence, with potential increases of £1 or £2 per week on top of the CPI + 1% increase.
The report pack also notes that tenants pay fixed service charges for services such as caretaking, grounds maintenance and CCTV, and that these charges may need to increase to cover inflationary pressures. The report pack states that the committee will be asked for its views on the council's strategy to consider rent and service charge increases from April 2026 at the joint DMC meeting in January.
The Public Reports Pack sets out how the Council intends to deliver on its strategic objectives in 26/27 for housing.