Apply for a Council Tax reduction

If you are on a low income whether in work, unemployed or retired you could get help to pay your Council Tax.

If you currently receive Council Tax Reduction, you can report a Change of address or circumstances.

Pension age customer

Council Tax Reduction is how the Council helps people on a low income pay their Council Tax bill. The Government tells us how we must work out the Council Tax Reduction for applicants of pensionable age. This is different to working age applicants.

You can check your state pension age on the GOV.UK website.

Am I eligible to claim?

To be eligible for the scheme you must meet the requirements below.

• you or your partner must be eligible to claim State Retirement Pension
• you must be liable to pay Council Tax for your property
• you must be living in the property as your main home
• you must have less than £16,000 in savings

You can get help with up to 100% of your Council Tax bill. The amount of Council Tax Reduction depends on:

• your (and any partner's) income and savings
• who lives in your household
• the amount of Council Tax you pay

You can find how much Council Tax Reduction you may be entitled to on the government benefits calculator.

Apply online for a Council Tax Reduction

If you are unable to apply online please can our helpline on 01642 393829.

Second adult support

Second Adult Support is help with your Council Tax if you are of pension age and share your home with one or more adults (not including your partner) who are on low incomes.

You may qualify if the adult living with you:

• is over 18 years
• is not your husband, wife, partner or civil partner
• does not pay Council Tax themselves
• does not pay you rent
• must not be a joint owner or tenant
• must have low income

When you apply for Council Tax Reduction, we will automatically consider second adult support as well. You will get whichever one means you pay less. The most second adult support you can get is 25%. If you are struggling to apply online, call our helpline on 01642 393829.

Apply online for a Council Tax Reduction

What happens next?

We will consider your application and then write to tell you:

• if your claim has been successful or not
• how much you have been awarded

We will credit your account with any award and send you a revised bill but if you think we have got it wrong, call our helpline on 01642 393829.

If you do not agree with the decision, you can write to us to:

• ask us to explain our decision
• ask us to look at the decision again

You need to give us as much information as possible to explain why you are not happy with the decision, for example if you think we made a mistake with your income, savings, people included or the date your Council Tax Reduction has been awarded from.

If we decide to change how much you are awarded, we will write to you. If we cannot alter our decision, we will tell you why and advise you of your right of appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.

Working age customer

Each year the Council must decide a local Council Tax Reduction Scheme for working age applicants in the Borough. Council Tax Reduction is how the Council helps people on a low income pay their Council Tax bill. From 1 April 2024 Council Tax Reduction discount for all working age residents will be assessed using an income banded scheme based on your income and household. Pensioners are not affected by this scheme.

You can find the full details of our local Council Tax Reduction Scheme in the Council Tax reduction scheme 2024 to 2025 (PDF, 923 KB)

Scheme summary

The discount will be based on a comparison of household size and weekly income of you and your partner (if you have one). We will disregard income from Armed Forces Independence payments, Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payments, Child Benefit, Child Maintenance and War Disablement Benefits as well as £25 from earnings if you are working and not receiving Universal Credit. The table below shows the percentage reduction that will be applied to your Council Tax account.

Household and income banded table 2024 to 2025

* Where any applicant or their partner are in receipt of a relevant benefit such as Income Support, income-based Jobseekers Allowance or income-related Employment Support Allowance, 100% discount will be awarded.

Am I eligible to claim?

To apply for working age Council Tax Reduction, you must meet the requirements below:

• you must be of working age (below state pension age)
• you must be liable to pay Council Tax for your property
• you must be living in the property as your main home
• you must have less than £10,000 in savings

Apply online for a Council Tax Reduction

What happens next?

We will consider your application and if you are eligible, we will send you a revised Council Tax bill which will show any award you are entitled to. This award will be credited to your Council Tax account. You will not receive a separate notification letter. If you think we have got it wrong, you can manage your Council Tax account online to check the calculation. If you are not registered to manage your account, you can set it up online.

Financial difficulty

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, there may be other support available to you including:

• maximising your income, including a referral to the Employment and Training Hub for support with finding employment or training opportunities
• advice on discounts, exemptions or discretionary payments that may be available to you, including reductions for disabilities
• considering a Council Tax exceptional hardship payment

Visit our benefits and support webpage to find out what help you may be entitled to.

Previous years scheme

You can find details of previous Local Council Tax Reduction Schemes in the following documents.

Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2022 to 2023 (PDF, 884 KB).

Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2023 to 2024 (PDF, 874 KB)

Contact us

If you have not found what you are looking for, contact us using our online form:

Contact us about Council Tax