Benefits advice and support

What is Council Tax?

Council Tax is a charge applied to every property in the country which pays for local services in your area including rubbish collection and local emergency services. It is a priority bill which means that it is extremely important that you pay this charge otherwise you could find yourself in trouble. 

What Support is Available?

If you are a single person living in a property with no one over the age of 18 or anyone disregarded for council tax purposes, you are entitled to a 25% single person discount regardless of income. 

If you are on benefits or a low income, you maybe eligible for Council Tax Reduction from your local authority. If you qualify on the grounds of meeting the means test, you will get some of your council tax paid for you. You may still find yourself needing make a contribution towards this.

Discounts and Exemptions

In certain circumstances your council tax bill could be reduced, the following are example of when this may apply:

1. If someone in the house is classed as having a ‘Severe Mental Impairment’ and is in receipt of a qualifying disability benefit they are disregarded for the purposes of council tax.
2. If someone is providing care of a minimum of 35 hours a week of care they can also be exempted from council tax liability. You do not have to be receiving Carers Allowance for this to apply.
3. If you have exceptional circumstances which are outside of your control, it is possible that you could receive a discount or a total exemption from council tax liability. In these circumstances, you write to the local authority and explain your situation and provide an income and expenditure statement. The local authority will then consider your request and will write out to you.
4. Some local authorities also have a council tax discretionary scheme, often from their local welfare fund. 

Managing Council Tax Arrears

If you have council tax arrears and found that the local authority is chasing you, it is important that you do not ignore this as you could find yourself served with liability orders and warrants. You should explain your situation to one of the council officers and they should allow you to set up an affordable payment plan based on your circumstances. This will put on hold any further action which maybe taken against you.  

This advice is provided by our Benefits Advisor, Robert Mandelstam. The information provided above is up to date for the financial year ending 5th April 2026.