Council Tax Reduction scheme

Council Tax Reduction is the way we help people on low incomes pay their council tax bill.

We work out how much you are entitled to by looking at who lives with you, how much income and savings you have and how much your council tax bill is.

From April 2020, the maximum amount of Council Tax Reduction we can award to people of working age was 88% of their council tax bill. However, due to COVID-19, a new hardship fund for working age Council Tax Reduction customers was launched by the government in April 2020. Households that receive Council Tax Reduction will be given a further £150 discount from their 2020/2021 bill. If the Council Tax bill for the year is less than £150 then the bill will be reduced to £0. You do not need to apply for this. If you qualify, it will automatically be credited to your bill. We are in the process of working on applying discounts to qualifying households and these households will get a new bill in due course.

These changes do not apply to pensioners.

You can use the calculator to find out how much help you could get to reduce your council tax bill.

Benefit calculator on BetterOff website

To find out how to make a claim click the button below:

How to make a claim

Help and advice

Independent money advice is available from a number of organisations including Money Helper, customers can also contact the Citizens Advice Bureau or the council's welfare rights and debt advice service for advice.

Appeal the decision made on your Council Tax Reduction claim

A detailed explanation can be provided by the council on request and if you are not satisfied after receiving this information or you do not receive this information within two months of your request you can appeal directly to the Valuation Tribunal.

You can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal against your council’s decision about:

  • Whether you are entitled to a Council Tax Reduction
  • How much of a reduction the council has awarded you under the local scheme

The tribunal cannot hear appeals about what is in the council’s scheme, only about the way the scheme has been applied in your case.

You can do this by contacting the Valuation Tribunal to submit an online appeal or to download an appeal form.  Their telephone number for any queries you may have is 0300 123 2035.

If you're having difficulties paying your council tax please see our struggling to pay your council tax page.

Downloadable documents

If you are unable to view documents of these types, our downloads page provides links to viewing software.

This page was last updated on 28 March 2024

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