Council Tax Reduction Scheme
Difficulty paying your Council Tax?
Council Tax Reduction (CTR) , also known as Council Tax Support (CTS) is financial help towards paying Council Tax.
You may be eligible for CTR if you’re on a low income, claim certain benefits, do not have more than £16,000 in capital or are in receipt of Pension Credit Guarantee Credit.
This income banded scheme protects our more vulnerable residents and those who are on ‘passported’ benefits such as Income Support. Those of pensionable age will also continue to receive maximum help based on their circumstances.
We will carry out an assessment using the composition, income and capital of the household compared to a needs allowance. Customers will be placed into a band according to their excess income (the amount by which their income exceeds their need allowance). The amount of CTR for each customer will not change if their excess income remains within that band.
Make an application for Council Tax Reduction
Apply for Council Tax Reduction
You will need to provide supporting evidence with your claim.
Any entitlement granted will be credited to your Council Tax account. You may be able to apply to backdate your claim for up to six months from the date of your claim.
Our aim is to finalise claims within 14 days of supplying the last piece of information required.
Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2026-2027
Applying for CTR when claiming Universal Credit
From the 1 April 2026 you can apply for CTR on your Universal Credit application. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will share your details with us, so you will not usually need to make a separate claim.
However, if you have non-dependants living with you (for example, other adults who are not your partner), you must provide:
- Their name and date of birth
- Evidence of their income
We will contact you if we need any additional information or documents.
While your application is being processed
You must continue to pay your Council Tax as billed until you receive a decision and a revised bill confirming any reduction.
We will be notified by DWP once you receive your first Universal Credit payment, which we use to calculate your entitlement to Council Tax Reduction. We will send you a notification letter to advise of the outcome.