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Housing Benefit for council tenants

• Who can claim Housing Benefit?
• How do I know if my income is low enough?
• What information will I have to provide?
• How does the number of people living in my home affect my benefit?
• Can I get benefit on the whole of my rent?
• When will my claim begin?
• How will my Housing Benefit be paid?
• What if my circumstances change?

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Who can claim Housing Benefit?

• You must live in the property that you are claiming for.
• We will also use your application to work out whether you qualify for Council Tax Benefit.
  • how much your weekly income is;
  • how much savings you have;
  • how many dependent children you have;
  • how many non-dependants are living with you and their income.
• Or you can download the Housing Benefits Form.

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How do I know if my income is low enough?

• You won't necessarily know unless you make a claim.
• If you are not sure, please make a claim - you have nothing to lose.

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What information will I have to provide?

• You will have to fill in a claim form, which asks questions about your income, the number of people living in your house, their income and so on.
• You will have to provide evidence of your income and savings by showing us your wage slips, benefit book, bank statements and so on.
• Although we ignore certain types of income (such as Attendance Allowance or War Widow's Pension) you must still tell us if you are getting one of these, as in some circumstances you may get more benefit.

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How does the number of people living in my home affect my benefit?

• If you have someone living with you who is over 18 and is not your partner (for example, a grown-up son or daughter) we have to use a 'non-dependant deduction' to work out your benefit. This is because the non-dependant should be contributing to the household costs.
• These deductions are set out at a number of different levels, according to the non-dependant's income.
• The deductions are set by the Government and we have to use them, even if the non-dependant does not contribute to the household costs.
• Generally speaking, most people who have non-dependants in their household receive a lower amount of benefit.

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Can I get benefit on the whole of my rent?

• You cannot get help with any 'ineligible services' which you pay - for example, insurance charges, heating charges and so on.
• You cannot get help with your water rates.

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When will my claim begin?

• We usually pay your benefit from the Monday following the date you first contacted us, as long as we receive all the information we need within one calendar month of this date.
• If you do not have all the information to support your claim, you should still return the claim form immediately - you can send the supporting information later, provided you do this within one calendar month.
• If you have just been awarded a tenancy, you must claim benefit in or before the first week that your rent becomes due so that we can pay it from the beginning of your tenancy.
• Housing Benefit is not automatically backdated so you must claim as soon as possible.
• You can ask to have your claim backdated, giving reasons why you did not claim earlier. We will look at each case on its merits, but you will have to show that there is a good reason for your claim to be backdated.

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How will my Housing Benefit be paid?

• Your benefit will be paid to your rent account and will reduce the weekly amount of rent which you have to pay.
• If you also qualify for Council Tax Benefit, this will be paid to your Council Tax account and will reduce the amount of your monthly instalments.

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What if my circumstances change?

• You must tell us straightaway about any changes to your circumstances - for example, if your income changes or if the number of people living in your household changes.
• If you do not tell us about any changes, you might not be getting the right amount of benefit. If you are paid too much benefit, we will ask you to pay the money back.