Council Tax Benefit
Council Tax Benefit is a Social Security benefit administered by a Local Authority, to help people pay their Council Tax.
There are two kinds of Council Tax Benefit:
- Council Tax Benefit - we work this out on your circumstances
- Second Adult Rebate - we work this out on the circumstances of other adults who live with you.
Anyone who has to pay Council Tax can claim Council Tax Benefit, but you can only claim Second Adult Rebate if you are the only person who has to pay Council Tax for your home and you have other adults living with you.
You cannot get Council Tax Benefit and Second Adult Rebate at the same time. If your circumstances mean that you are entitled to both benefits, you will get the one which takes the most money off your Council Tax bill.
Housing Benefit
Housing Benefit is a Social Security benefit administered by a Local Authority, to help people on a low income to pay their rent.
What information do we use to work out your benefit?
When we work out your Housing and Council Tax benefit we take account of the following details:
- How much money you have coming in each week.
- How much you have in savings and investments.
- Who lives in your household.
- The circumstances of any other adults who live with you.
If you rent your home from a private landlord we will use the Local Housing Allowance rules, which are based on the number of bedrooms your family need and not the size of the property you rent.
For more information on Local Housing Aallowance, please see the page Changes to Housing Benefit from April 2011.
For further information about these benefits and how to claim them, please see our Useful Booklets page. The main form for claiming Housing and Council Tax benefit can be downloaded from our Benefit Related Forms page.