Residents to be asked for their views on Council Tax Support Scheme
Monday, November 04, 2024
Local people will be able to have their say on changes to Wakefield’s Working Age Council Tax Support Scheme if a public consultation is approved at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 12 November.
“The principles of our current scheme have been in place for 12 years. As part of managing our resources responsibly and targeting them towards those most in need it’s time for us to look at it again.
“There may be more effective ways to balance helping residents with making support more affordable for the Council. I’d urge residents to have their say as part of the upcoming consultation – it’s important we take your views into account before making any changes.”
Cllr Les Shaw
Cabinet Member for Resources
The scheme was last changed in 2020. But it remains complex, costly to administer, and is expensive compared to many neighbouring councils. Claims for the Working Age Support Scheme increased by 6.7% in the last year – the highest number in West Yorkshire.
With the Council facing very difficult financial circumstances – a budget gap of about £88m over the next five years – it needs to consider options to save money and help continue delivering essential services for residents.
The consultation is on proposed changes including changing the types of income taken into account. The levels of personal savings an applicant can have. And on the amounts of support available for residents.
If Cabinet members agree to the consultation, residents’ feedback would be included as part of a report to a future Cabinet meeting for members to decide if any changes should be made. Any recommendations would then be considered at Full Council.
Councils must provide a Local Council Tax Support Scheme to help people on low incomes pay their Council Tax. There are currently around 31,500 residents receiving Council Tax support in the district. Around 21,500 of them are working age and 10,000 are of pension age.
The rules for the pensioner element of the scheme are set by central Government and provides pensioners with support of up to a maximum of 100% of their Council Tax liability.
The working age element of the scheme is for each Council to decide annually. The current working age scheme has a maximum level of support for working age claimants of 70%. This means that all working age claimants pay a minimum of 30% of their property’s Council Tax charge.
Cabinet will meet on Tuesday 12 November at 10.30am. The meeting can be watched live or later on the Council’s website.