Housing Matters - January 2026
Tuesday, 20 January 2026
News and updates from our housing team.
Have your say on our housing budget
Share your views on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budget for the 2026 to 2027 financial year.
The Housing Revenue Account is funded through rent and service charges paid by tenants and leaseholders. This budget is ring-fenced, meaning it can only be used for housing-related costs such as repairs, maintenance, safety works and managing council homes.
As part of the consultation, we are proposing a 4.8% rent increase for 2026 to 2027, in line with national guidance from the Regulator of Social Housing. This reflects rising costs across the housing service, including materials, labour and meeting essential safety standards.
We have launched a consultation on this, giving you the opportunity to help shape how money is spent on council housing and related services.
About the budget
Under the draft budget, we expect our total housing income for 2026 to 2027 to be around £44 million. A significant proportion of this funding is planned for ongoing maintenance and repairs, the cost of borrowing for previous investment in council homes, support and staffing, and housing management services.
Planned investment includes work to roofs and structures, fire and building safety improvements, internal upgrades such as kitchens and bathrooms, and measures to improve energy efficiency and sustainability across the housing stock.
Your feedback is an important part of the decision-making process and will help us balance the need to invest in homes while keeping services affordable.
How to get involved
Read more about the consultation and take part by visiting our website.
Join us at an event to find out more
These events outline our past, current and future spending, explain why we spend what we do and where, and give you a chance to ask questions and share your views.
Email tenant.involvement@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk to find out more.
- Wednesday 21 January 2026, 3.30pm to 4.30pm – Holts Court Communal Room, Dunstable, LU6 1HR
- Thursday 22 January 2026, 3pm to 5pm – Houghton Regis Library, Bedford Square, LU5 5ES
- Friday 23 January 2026, 11am to 12pm – Gale Court, Hexton Road, Barton Le Clay, MK45 4LH
- Tuesday 27 January 2026, 2pm to 4pm – Leighton Buzzard Library, Lake Street, LU7 1RX
- Wednesday 28 January 2026, 2pm to 3pm – Furness Avenue Communal Room, Dunstable, LU6 3BN
- Thursday 29 January 2026, 2pm to 3pm – 26A Croft Green Communal Room, Dunstable, LU6 1EG
Coming soon: have your say on our new pet policy
Before the policy is finalised, we would like to hear your thoughts.
We know how important pets are to many of our tenants, which is why we have been working on a new Pet Policy that aims to provide clear guidance while supporting responsible pet ownership.
A short survey will be shared during January 2026 by email or post. Your feedback will help ensure the policy is fair, clear and reflects tenant needs.
How we’re raising the bar on cleaning standards
The Housing Neighbourhood Operations Team is changing how cleaning is managed in communal areas, focusing on openness, quality and value for money.
Using Matterport technology, the team can create detailed scans and maps of communal spaces to support accurate specifications and quality monitoring.
This work is supported through partnership with the British Institute of Cleaning Science, alongside trials of QR codes and smarter quality checks.
Making our estates bloom with our third annual bulb planting
The Housing Neighbourhood Operations Team has been working with local schoolchildren and MJ Grangers to plant spring bulbs in communal spaces at Elm Park Close in Houghton Regis.
Looking for a new home? Independent living could be for you
Homes are available at the following Independent Living Schemes:
- All Saints View, Houghton Regis
- Priory View, Dunstable
- Meadowsweet Place, Flitwick
These schemes support people aged over 55 to live independently, with the benefits of community living and support when needed.
Call the Housing Demand Team on 0300 300 5080 or email housing.register@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
Have your say on our budget plans and Council Tax
We are asking residents to share their views on the draft budget for 2026 to 2027.
The consultation runs from 7 January to 3 February 2026, with paper copies available in council libraries from 12 January.
Opportunities to talk to us
These drop-in sessions give tenants the chance to speak with the housing team in an informal setting.
- Tuesday 10 February 2026, 10am to midday – The Dunstable Centre, Dunstable, LU5 4JD
- Wednesday 18 February 2026, 10am to midday – Houghton Regis Library, Bedford Square, LU5 5ES
- Thursday 26 February 2026, 11am to 1pm – Leighton Buzzard Library, Lake Street, LU7 1RX
- Friday 20 March 2026, midday to 2pm – Houghton Regis Library, Bedford Square, LU5 5ES
- Friday 27 March 2026, 10am to midday – Leighton Buzzard Library, Lake Street, LU7 1RX
Opportunities to volunteer with the Independent Living Team
We are looking for volunteers to help support activities and companionship in our Independent Living Schemes.
Email prioryview@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or allsaintsviewoperations@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk to find out more.
Six new homes at The Green, Beeston
The Housing Delivery Team has completed six new homes in Sandy, including affordable rent, wheelchair-accessible and shared ownership properties.
Direct Debit
Direct Debit is a secure, flexible and reliable way to pay your rent.
- 0300 300 6652 – weekly, fortnightly or four-weekly payments on a Monday
- 0300 300 5186 – payments from the 1st to the 7th of each month
- 0300 300 5640 – payments from the 8th to the 14th of each month
- 0300 300 6855 – payments from the 15th to the 21st of each month
- 0300 300 8418 – payments from the 22nd to the 28th of each month
If lines are busy, email housingbusinessteam@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk and we will contact you.
Share your views with us
Help us continue to improve our housing service.
Contacting us
We want to make sure you can contact us in the way that works best for you, and your views are essential to this process.
Take our short survey and tell us how you prefer to communicate. Whether you are happy with how things are now, or you think we could do better, we want to hear from you.
We are always looking for ways to improve, but we cannot fix what we do not know about. Your feedback helps us make things better for everyone.
Comments, compliments, complaints and service requests
Having your voice heard and providing your feedback is valuable to us. There are lots of ways that you can have your say about our housing service.
Comments
Often people want to suggest improvements to services. If you make a suggestion, we will record this as a comment.
Compliments
If you tell us about a service that has been good or a member of staff who has been helpful, we will record this as a compliment and share your praise with those involved.
Service requests
A service request is a request by you for us to take action to put something right. Service requests are not complaints, but we record them, monitor them and review them for learning and improvements.
If we consider the issue raised to be a service request, we will ask the relevant team to reply to you directly.
Complaints
You can complain if you are affected by the way we provide services. Common examples of complaints include delay, poor record keeping, failure to act, failure to follow procedure or the law, poor communication, behaviour of our staff (also called officers), or giving out misleading information.
You can provide any of the above feedback by emailing housing.feedback@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk or by completing our online form.