Council leaders have dropped controversial plans for a £52-a-year amenity charge, after it was opposed by hundreds of tenants.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council had proposed to impose the £1 weekly charge on its 17,000 tenants to help cover the cost of maintaining land within housing estates.

The cost of providing services such as grass cutting and litter-picking on estate grounds is charged to the council's housing revenue account but not recouped from tenants. More than 1,000 council tenants responded to a consultation on the proposal, with 60 per cent saying they were opposed to the amenity charge, and only 25 per cent being in favour.

Tenants raised concerns over issues such as affordability and service quality, and some felt that existing charges like council tax should cover the maintenance costs.

Council leaders have now decided that it is 'not the right time' to introduce the charge, and will look at other ways of covering the maintenance costs.

Council leaders said they will look at other ways of covering maintenance costs (Nub News).

Councillor Chris Robinson, cabinet member for housing and planning, said: "In November 2024, we wrote to all of our tenants outlining proposals for a new amenity charge. Just over one thousand residents responded to our consultation and we have reviewed all of the feedback.

"I can confirm that, after looking at this proposal again, we feel it is not the right time to introduce this additional charge.

"For now, the council will continue to cover the full cost of important services such as grass cutting, spraying weeds, litter picking and clearing paths on housing estates across the city out of the rent. These services will continue to be delivered as normal. The council is now looking at other ways to address the shortfall in revenue."

Cabinet members will make a formal decision on the amenity charge at their meeting on Tuesday, January 14, where they are also expected to back proposals for a 2.7 per cent rent increase.

Rent paid by council tenants goes to the housing revenue account (HRA), which is used to pay for the maintenance of council homes. According to the cabinet report, as the HRA pays for the maintenance of council estate grounds, but does not pass the cost onto tenants, it means the HRA 'does not receive sufficient income…to meet its obligations to provide adequate, decent, safe and compliant accommodation'.

Councillor Chris Robinson, cabinet member for housing and planning (Image supplied).

A total of 1,088 people took part in the consultation, with just over half of the responses coming from tenants who receive Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, meaning they would not be financially impacted by the amenity charge. Some tenants feared that the charge would increase after a year and raised concerns over the cost of living crisis.

Former Labour councillor Desiree Elliott also started a petition against the amenity charge, which was signed by 143 people. In her petition, Ms Elliott described it as an 'unfair charge' that would result in council tenants paying for amenities also used by non-tenants.

Ms Elliott welcomed the decision to scrap the plans for the charge. She said: "I think this is common sense. I'm glad that they've changed their mind and they're going to look at other ways of paying these costs.

"I just think it was unfair to just ask tenants to pay the charge, when it's not just tenants who benefit. It might be justified if you have an area that's 100 per cent council homes, but in other parts of the city there will be a mix."

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READ MORE: Stoke-on-Trent City Council proposing £7.5m of cuts and 4.99 per cent tax rise

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