Ministers have confirmed the Local Housing Allowance will be set for 2026 at the rates determined on 31 January 2024. The statutory instrument was signed on 6 January and comes into force on 30 January, applying across England, Wales and Scotland. It covers both Housing Benefit and the Universal Credit housing element, fixing BRMA caps for another year at 2024 levels.

This repeats last year’s approach, when the Department for Work and Pensions held 2025 rates at the same levels introduced in April 2024, rather than updating them to new market evidence. The 2025 order explicitly set LHA for all BRMAs to the amounts in force on 31 January 2024. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

Rents in the North have not stood still. The Office for National Statistics reports private rent inflation in England at 4.4% in the 12 months to November 2025, with the North East running hotter at 8.4% over the same period. That pace, set against fixed LHA caps, widens the gap low‑income renters must bridge each month. ([ons.gov.uk](Link

LHA is set within Broad Rental Market Areas - geographic zones that often cut across council boundaries. Within each BRMA there are five caps from the shared room rate up to the four‑bed rate. The government’s methodology restored rates to the 30th percentile for April 2024 and then froze them for 2025; the 2026 instrument keeps that freeze in place. ([gov.uk](Link

Manchester shows how this lands on the ground. ONS puts the average two‑bed rent in the city at £1,198 a month in November 2025, and three‑beds at £1,386. Over the current financial year the LHA cap for a two‑bed is £875 in Central Greater Manchester and £750 in Southern Greater Manchester; three‑beds are capped at £950 and £900 respectively. That leaves typical monthly shortfalls of roughly £320–£450 for a two‑bed and £430–£480 for a three‑bed. ([cy.ons.gov.uk](Link

In Newcastle, where rent growth has been fastest in the North, ONS records a two‑bed average of £968 a month in November 2025. The Tyneside BRMA two‑bed LHA is £126.58 a week - roughly £549 a month - leaving a gap of about £420 for a typical household. ([ons.gov.uk](Link

Sheffield sits somewhere in between. The ONS two‑bed average was £826 a month in November 2025. The Sheffield BRMA two‑bed LHA is £619.98 a month, implying a shortfall of just over £200 for a typical family renting privately. ([ons.gov.uk](Link

BRMA lines matter. In Manchester alone, households a few streets apart can face different caps, with the city split between Central and Southern Greater Manchester areas. The council’s own guidance confirms postcode splits and shows the 2025/26 rates were unchanged from 2024/25 - now effectively rolled into 2026 by the new order. ([manchester.gov.uk](Link

Councils say that widening shortfalls spill into temporary accommodation budgets. Sheffield City Council warns: “Placing people in B&Bs and other short‑term accommodation is expected to cause a £6.6m pressure on the Council’s budget in 2024/25.” Housing committee chair Cllr Douglas Johnson adds that “the demand for homelessness assistance in Sheffield remains high.” ([haveyoursay.sheffield.gov.uk](Link

Whitehall’s paperwork argues otherwise. The government’s explanatory note alongside last year’s instrument stated that “no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.” Local rent data and council budgets across the North tell a different story. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

For tenants, the practical picture is stark: LHA will not move with rents this year. Households should check which BRMA they fall into and the cap that applies, then speak to councils about any Discretionary Housing Payment support - an imperfect patch, but often the only immediate option while rates remain fixed. ([manchester.gov.uk](Link

The ONS will publish its next private rent update on 21 January 2026. Unless market rents stall sharply, the region will head into spring with 2024‑era caps and 2026‑era bills - a gap Northern councils and renters are already being asked to fill. ([ons.gov.uk](Link