Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support

If you get Income Support, income related Employment and Support Allowance or income-based Job Seeker's Allowance:

You will get the maximum amount of rent after we have taken off charges for:

• Other people who live with you - these are called non-dependants.
• Service charges.
• Any rent restrictions, which the rent officer has told us about.

In all other cases:

• We work out your benefit by comparing the money you get each week with your 'applicable amount'.
• Your applicable amount is what the Government says you and your family need to live on each week.
• The applicable amount will be higher for some people - for example, if you are disabled or if you are a one-parent family.

When we have worked out what money you get each week if it's less than or the same as the applicable amount you will usually get the maximum benefit. But don't forget, if you have non-dependants living with you we might have to make deductions from your benefit for them.

Also, the amount of Housing Benefit you get might be affected by what the rent officer has said, or by any service charges that are included in your rent.

Please note:

If your income is less than or the same as, your 'applicable amount', you should claim Employment and Support Allowance or Universal Credit as you might get more help.

You may also be able to claim other benefits, for example, Universal Credit.

Are you unsure how much benefit you will receive, or how much money you will have left once you have paid your bills?

Use our benefits calculator to:

• See how much benefit you might be entitled to
• Help to identify your priority bills and manage your money
• See how changes in your circumstances would affect your income

There are also a number of local and national agencies that can provide advice and support.

Please note all benefit claims may take up to 4 weeks to process, please avoid contacting the team for an update before this time has passed.