Council tax benefit is intended to help people with the cost of council tax. It can be paid in addition to any discounts that  you may also be eligible to claim.

To be eligible to claim council tax benefit you must be liable to pay council tax in respect of the dwelling and be resident at the subject dwelling.

You can claim council tax benefit if you are liable to pay council tax for the property you live at.

Normal council tax benefit is based on yours and your partner’s income, capital and circumstances.

There is another type of council tax benefit that you may be able to get instead of normal council tax benefit;  this is known as second adult rebate.

Second adult rebate is based on the income and circumstances of other adults (not including your partner) who live in your household.

This may be awarded if your income is too high to get normal council tax benefit but another adult in your household has a low income for example receives Income Support.

The maximum second adult rebate that can be awarded is restricted to 25% of your total council tax bill.

Where you have applied for both normal council tax benefit and second adult rebate we will automatically work out and award whichever benefit results in the highest award.   However, you can apply for second adult rebate only if you wish.

If you are also claiming Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance or Minimum Income Guarantee, the Department for Work and Pensions will include a housing/council tax benefit claim form in the claim pack they send to you. You need to complete the form and send it directly to us at the address shown at the bottom of this
page.

You can  contact us on 01665 510505 and we will send you a claim form. You can also get a claim form from  any of the Council Offices.

It is important that you complete and return the claim form to us at the address shown on the form as soon as possible. If you do not have all of the proof that we have asked for on the form straight away you still need to return the form to us and state on the form or a separate sheet of paper when the other information will be provided. If you delay sending the form to us, you could lose benefit.

It is very important that you complete each section on the form and tick each yes and no box. If the form is not properly completed we will have to return it to you and it will delay your claim.

If you need help to complete the form please contact us on the phone number shown on the form.

Yes you can claim council tax benefit if you work and receive a low income.
We will need to see proof of your earnings. You will need to provide:-

• Your last five payslips, if you are paid weekly
• Your last two payslips, if you are paid monthly
• If you have only recently started work and not yet been paid, ask your employer to provide an estimate of your gross earnings, tax and National Insurance deductions. We will use this information to calculate your housing benefit until you receive actual details of your earnings.

It will depend on the amount of capital you and your partner
have as to whether it will affect your benefit entitlement.

• If you and your partner have joint capital of more than £16,000 you will not  normally be able to get housing benefit.
• If you or your partner are aged 60 or over you can have up to £6,000 capital  before it affects your benefit entitlement.
• Income of £1 for every £500 between £6,000.00 and £16,000 is taken into account when we work out entitlement to benefit.
• If you and your partner are aged less than 60 you can have up to £3,000 capital before it affects your benefit entitlement.
• Income of £1 for every £250 between £3,000.00 and £16,000 is taken into account when we work out entitlement to benefit.
• Capital includes cash, current accounts, other bank/building society/post 
  office accounts, unit trusts, ISAs, TESSAs, National Savings Certificates, shares, premium bonds and property (other than the home you live in) or land you own.

We will pay any council tax benefit, including second adult rebate entitlement, direct to your council tax account.

This will reduce the amount that you have to pay and we will send you a new council tax bill to advise you how much you have to pay.

We will acknowledge receipt of your claim form if you have sent your form in the post.

If you have not received any acknowledgement or contact from us within 2 weeks of sending your form, please contact us  as we may not have received your form.

When we receive your claim form we will check the form and the proof that you have provided.

If we have all of the information we need to decide your claim we will process your claim as quickly as possible and inform you of outcome of your claim.

If we need you to provide more information we will write to you again. You will have 28 days to provide us with any additional information that we request or for you to advise us when the information will be available.

It is very important that you let us know immediately if you have a change in your circumstances as you may receive too little or too much benefit.

It is an offence not to tell us about any change of circumstance that affects your benefit. We may take court action against you and if we pay you too much benefit, you will probably have to pay it back.

You must  tell us about any changes by writing to the Benefit Section at the address shown at the bottom of this page .It is important that you provide details of the change, the date that the change occurred and proof where appropriate.
 
Examples of the type of changes that you need to report are as follows:

• If you change your address
• If your rent changes (private tenants only)
• If you or your partner go into hospital
• If you or your partner's income or savings increase or decrease
• Including:
  - If Income Support or Jobseeker's Allowance stops
  - Starting work or changing employer 
  - If the amount or type of state benefit changes 
  - If wages increase or decrease 
  - If private pension increases 
  - If a tax credit is awarded or the amount of award changes
• Changes affecting people who live with you including: 
  - If someone comes to live with you or if someone leaves your household 
  - If the income or circumstances of someone living with you change (e.g. they start work or their Income Support ends)
  - If you stop getting child benefit for someone

This list only provides some examples of the type of changes that may occur and is not exhaustive and it is important that you check with the Benefit Section on the phone number shown below if you are unsure if a change will affect your entitlement to housing benefit.

If you are receiving income support or income-based jobseekers allowance you should notify the date you started work to both the Department for Work Pensions and the Benefit Section.

Extended payment/lone parent run-on - if you have been unemployed for 6 months or more and you were receiving Income Support or Income Based Jobseekers Allowance immediately before starting work you may be entitled to an Extended Payment of housing benefit.

This means that for the first 4 weeks after you start work you will continue to receive the same amount of housing benefit that was in payment before starting work.

If you wish to claim an Extended Payment you need to advise the Jobcentre, Social Security Office or council within 8 days of your Income Support or Income Based Jobseeker's Allowance ceasing. It is important that you to do this as we cannot backdate a claim for an Extended Payment.

If you are a Lone Parent and meet the Extended Payment conditions you should receive a Lone Parent Run-on; this means that Income Support or Income Based Jobseeker's Allowance will remain in payment for a further 2 weeks after you start work. housing benefit will also continue for a further 2 weeks where a Lone Parent Run-on applies and in addition an Extended Payment will be paid for up to a further 2 weeks which means you will get up to a total of 4 weeks benefit at the same rate you were receiving before you started work.

You may also be able to get an extended payment of council tax benefit to cover council tax.

If you do not qualify for full housing benefit, it may mean that you have to pay something towards your rent.

You could apply for a Discretionary Housing Payment to help towards these payments.

If you think that you may qualify for extra help, please contact us and we will  send the necessary form.

You will need to provide us with full details of why you feel you should get extra help for example details of any medical conditions and family circumstances you feel should be taken into account.

We may need to ask you to provide additional information and/or evidence to support your application.

The council are committed to ensuring that people receive their correct entitlement to housing and/or council tax benefit and every effort will be made to deal with claims as quickly as possible.

However, it is important that people who are claiming benefit to which they are not entitled are reported, so that the appropriate action can be taken against them.

If you are aware or think that somebody may be claiming benefit fraudulently you can contact us on the Benefit Fraud Hotline 01665  510622 , which is a 24-hour freephone service. Any information provided will be treated in confidence. Or you can ring the National Fraud Hotline on 0800 854440.

If you are calling in person or wish to hand in any forms or supporting evidence  call at:

Benefit Section      
Greenwell Lane      
Alnwick       NE66 1HB  
Tel: 01665 510505

Council Offices
George Street
Amble

Council Offices
Front Street
Rothbury
(Fridays only)

If you are writing to us write to:

Benefit Section,
Alnwick District Council,
Allerburn House,
Denwick Lane,
Alnwick
NE66 1YY
Tel: 01665 510505

Or email us at:
Customerservices@alnwick.gov.uk