A call has been made for Stirling Council and social landlords to look at freezing rents for tenants in the coming financial year.

It follows recent announcements by housing associations in Argyll and Bute, Glasgow and Dundee that they are not increasing rents in 2021/22 due to the economic hardship caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Last week Stirling Rural Housing Association, which has 628 homes across the district, announced that it was freezing tenants rents from April.

Abertay Housing Association in Dundee and Cernach and Parkhead housing associations in Glasgow as well as Fyne Homes in Rothesay have all announced rent freezes in recent weeks.

Mid Scotland and Fife Green MSP Mark Ruskell is calling on Stirling Council and registered social landlords to explore the possibility of a rent freeze for tenants in the coming year.

He said: “The pandemic has placed enormous strain on individuals and social landlords should explore every option to ease the burden on their tenants.

“Housing associations across the country have recognised this and already committed to freezing rents in the coming year.

“That being said, the Scottish Government’s support for renters, in both the private and social sector, hasn’t been good enough throughout this crisis and as it continues they still need to step up and support people who find themselves struggling to pay the rent.”

A Stirling Council spokesperson said this week: “Our rent charges are among the lowest in Scotland and we need to consider their costs each year to allow us to continue repair and maintenance levels across our 5700-plus homes.

“We are acutely aware of the financial pressures faced by many of our tenants who have been affected by Covid-19.

“Rent affordability remains a key concern for us, against the need to invest in our stock and continue to build much needed new homes to help meet the demand for affordable social housing in Stirling.

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“Given the challenges facing our tenants, it is more important than ever that decisions on matters as significant as rent increases are made in consultation with them and we would encourage everyone to get involved in our annual rent survey and have their say at https://www.stirling.gov.uk/rentconsult.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson this week pointed to support available to tenants through social security benefits like Universal Credit, discretionary housing payments and a tenants hardship loan fund, adding: “We recognise that the economic impact of the pandemic has had a financial impact on some tenants which is why from the outset we have encouraged tenants who are having difficulty paying their rent to ensure they access all the help and advice available and to speak to their landlord. We expect landlords to be flexible with their tenants, and discuss managing rental payments.

“Any rent increase or rent freeze is a matter for individual social landlords to determine, in consultation with their tenants and registered tenant organisations.”