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2016/2017 council tax support schemes
Spotted this ... Redbridge Council are consulting on:
- a reduction in the maximum amount of support for all working age households to either 80% or 85%
- maximum backdating of 4 weeks only for working age claimants
- new working age claimants will no longer receive the family premium.
Any other councils planning changes?
I’m not sure, but Greenwich has provided an upper limit of 85% council tax support for working age claimants since council tax benefit was devolved to Local Authorities. Apart from that, I think the rules are the same as they were for CTB.
Spotted this ... Redbridge Council are consulting on:
.... Any other councils planning changes?
I think we’ll see quite a lot of consultations on further working-age CTR cuts for 2016/17.
The tax credit cuts from April 2016 will mean a big drop in income for some CTR claimants. Lower income means more CTR so LAs in England are worried that they’ll have to provide less support in order to avoid going over budget.
It’s difficult for LAs to accurately estimate the full impact so a lot of LAs will be consulting on further cuts (just in case) because they can’t make changes if they haven’t consulted (*) and they have to get any changes approved by members by 31 Jan 2016 (*).
(* - some LAs take a slightly more elastic view on these constraints than others.)
I don’t know if the Governments in Scotland or Wales have any plans for CTR changes for 2016/17 - anyone heard anything?
This 1 looks interesting , PIP & DLA ?
Billy
Hi all. Any idea where I can get a look at Birmingham City Council’s proposed 2016/2017 Council Tax Support Scheme. I fear the worst. Ta
Hi all. Any idea where I can get a look at Birmingham City Council’s proposed 2016/2017 Council Tax Support Scheme. I fear the worst. Ta
Birmingham’s Corporate Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee are due to look at CTR on 21 October 2015 1pm Committee Room 2 - there might be some clues there?
Thanks Jon. Much obliged!
Liverpool City Council -
‘According to the authority most people affected will be in the least expensive properties in the city, Band A – the lowest council tax level.
Under the proposals being considered the amount they pay will go up from 8.5% to 20% of their total council tax bill for their home next year, 2016-17.
For comparison, a 2015-16 band A in Liverpool is £1,077.12 - meaning a rise from 8.5% to 20% would see household’s bills go up from £91 to £215.
The change, if approved, is expected to affect about 40,000 households across the city, according to the local authority.
Liverpool City Council -
‘According to the authority most people affected will be in the least expensive properties in the city, Band A – the lowest council tax level.
Under the proposals being considered the amount they pay will go up from 8.5% to 20% of their total council tax bill for their home next year, 2016-17.
For comparison, a 2015-16 band A in Liverpool is £1,077.12 - meaning a rise from 8.5% to 20% would see household’s bills go up from £91 to £215.
The change, if approved, is expected to affect about 40,000 households across the city, according to the local authority.
It went up to 20% a few years ago in Birmingham which has resulted in loads of court summon charges and Equita profitting by being BCC’s favoured enforcement agents along with ross and roberts.
Wandsworth:
Single people, lone parents and couples with children could be hit with a council tax bill for the first time.
Wandsworth Borough Council is currently consulting on a plan to increase the minimum threshold so that every working age household makes a minimum contribution of 30 per cent of their council tax, unless they are a protected group. This means they could end up with a £200 increase in their annual bill from 2016.
Coventry City Council have just closed their public consultation. Had previously retained 100% for working age recipients.
London Borough of Bromley:
Members are asked to request that Full Council, at the meeting of the 14th December, adopt for financial year 2016/17 a scheme whereby entitlement for working-age claimants is calculated on 75% of the households Council Tax liability. Thereby the maximum assistance provided to a claimant of working-age is 75% of his/her Council Tax liability.
Newcastle City Council:
Severely disabled people in Newcastle face a council tax hike after controversial proposals were approved by council.
As it stands, Newcastle City Council provides 100% relief for thousands of people registered as severely disabled in the city.
But an £8m cut in the government’s local council tax reduction scheme means more than 5,894 people will now be asked to foot 15% of the bill.
The cash-strapped authority has said 5,000 people will be asked to pay £2.97 per week living in Band A properties.
At the same time as asking the severely disabled to pay, there will be a discount for 14,215 low income families who could see their bills reduced by 99p per week.
http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/disabled-tax-passed-newcastle-city-10696690
Ps - Newcastle CAB is also under threat .. http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/newcastles-citizens-advice-bureau-could-10700408
Telford & Wrekin Council are proposing to apply a ‘benefit cap for CTR’ - with no support for claimants subject to the HB or UC cap. (Including the lower caps coming in next year.)
See: http://www.telford.gov.uk/news/article/3175/changes_to_council_tax_support
and
http://apps.telford.gov.uk/CouncilAndDemocracy/Meetings/Download/MTc4ODA= (page 11)
So claimants who are already struggling with debt and facing eviction because of the benefit cap will now get no help at all with their council tax (down from 79% support)...
I wonder if they’ve really thought it through…
That is appalling and completely irrational. I hope that half-witted idea comes to a very sticky end very quickly.
Spotted this ... Redbridge Council are consulting on:
.... Any other councils planning changes?
I think we’ll see quite a lot of consultations on further working-age CTR cuts for 2016/17.The tax credit cuts from April 2016 will mean a big drop in income for some CTR claimants. Lower income means more CTR so LAs in England are worried that they’ll have to provide less support in order to avoid going over budget.
It’s difficult for LAs to accurately estimate the full impact so a lot of LAs will be consulting on further cuts (just in case) because they can’t make changes if they haven’t consulted (*) and they have to get any changes approved by members by 31 Jan 2016 (*).
(* - some LAs take a slightly more elastic view on these constraints than others.)
I don’t know if the Governments in Scotland or Wales have any plans for CTR changes for 2016/17 - anyone heard anything?
Scottish gov budget was out a few weeks ago and no cuts in ctr support were listed in that.
only my own personal opinion here but I cant see them doing it in the near future either as the Scottish government have been keen to be seen to oppose welfare cuts and there seems to be a lot of popular support for that stance…..election year here as well also.
if we eventually get greater devolved powers (over taxation in particular) then politically things are going to get a lot more interesting up here.