What's New?
This is where you can find out what's new in Housing and Council Tax Benefit, as well as find out about any other changes that may affect these benefits.
Cold Weather payments
Cold weather payments are available to people on a low income and are paid for each seven-day period at, or below, zero degrees Celsius. Please go to our Cold Weather Payments page for further information.
Benefit Overpayments
There have been several press reports of a recent decision in the Court of Appeal relating to recovery of overpayments of DWP benefits*. Judges in the Court of Appeal ruled the government had no power to recover the overpayments unless they were the result of misrepresentation or fraud.
This decision does not relate to the recovery of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit overpayments. It only affects overpayments of DWP benefits where recovery action is governed by Section 71 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992. Overpayments of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit are governed by Sections 75 and 76 respectively and as such are not affected by this ruling.
For more information about benefit overpayments, please go to our Overpayments section.
*CPAG v Secretary Of State for Work and Pensions.
Child benefit disregard from 2 November 2009
Child Benefit income will be fully disregarded in the assessment of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit with effect from 2nd November 2009. This is an important change meaning that many families who have previously not qualified for Housing or Council Tax Benefit could now receive some help towards paying their rent or Council Tax.
If you would like to check if you now qualify, you can use the Web Benefits Calculator
Existing claims for Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit will automatically be updated to reflect this change and customers will be notified of the change to their benefit.
Capital changes for customers who have reached qualifying age for State Pension Credit from 2 November 2009
With effect from 2nd November 2009 the capital threshold is being increased from £6,000 to £10,000 for customers who have reached the qualifying age for State Pension Credit.
This means that £10,000 will be ignored in the calculation of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.
The effect of this change is to reduce the tariff income included in the calculation of entitlements to benefits. For more details about how capital and the tariff income effect entitlement to benefits please view our Capital page.
Existing claims for Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit will automatically be updated to reflect this change and customers will be notified of the change to their benefit.
Changes to State Pension Age for Women
The State Pension age for women will gradually increase from 60 to 65 between 2010 and 2020, so that it is equal to the State Pension age for men.
- The gradual increase in State Pension affects all women born between 6 April 1950 and 5 April 1955.
- From April 2009 to January 2012 the Department for Work and Pensions will write to all women affected by the gradual increase to tell them the date they will reach State Pension age.
- Women born on or after 6 April 1955 will have the same State Pension age as men.
See the Direct Gov website for further information on pensions.
Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
What is Employment and Support Allowance?
From 27 October 2008 there has a new benefit from The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) called Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). It is for new customers and replaces Incapacity Benefit (IB), Income Support paid on the grounds of incapacity (IS) and Severe Disablement Allowance (SDA).
Customers who are currently in receipt of IB, SDA or IS are not affected by this change and both schemes will run alongside each other for some time.
How does the Department for Work and Pensions assess ESA?
There are 2 phases; the assessment phase that is paid for up to 13 weeks, then the main phase with an extra component; either a work-related activity component or a support component. During the assessment phase a health care professional will carry out a Work Capability Assessment with you. The DWP will then decide if you are entitled to ESA, and which component you should be awarded in the main phase.
How does ESA affect Housing and Council Tax Benefit?
Customers will either be awarded Employment and Support Allowance (Income Related) or Employment and Support Allowance (Contributory).
Employment and Support Allowance (Income Related) or ESA (IR)
Employment and Support Allowance (Income Related) or ESA (IR)
- It is means tested which means that it is based on the income and capital of you and your partner. The capital limit is £16,000.
- ESA (IR) is a passported benefit, just like Income Support and income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance.
- If you are in receipt of ESA (IR) in either the assessment or the main phase, you will receive full Housing and Council Tax Benefit (subject to any non-dependant deductions which may apply or your rental charge).
Employment and Support Allowance (Contributory) or ESA (C)
- It is based on the amount of National Insurance contributions that you have paid in the past.
- It is not a passported benefit.
- You may not get full Housing and Council Tax Benefit if you are in receipt of this. We will also take into account any income and capital that you or your partner may have.
‘Better Buy’ Option
For Housing and Council Tax Benefit claims from couples where one or both are receiving Employment and Support Allowance, there is a ‘better buy’ option where you may be financially better off if you switch who is the Housing or Council Tax Benefit claimant. We will calculate this when you make your claim and if it is beneficial to switch we will write to you to explain what you need to do.
Get more information on ESA
You may find the answers to your questions on the ESA questions and answers page or have a look on the DWP website for more information on ESA and other DWP benefits.
Changes to Backdating Rules
On 6 October 2008 there was a change to the backdating rules for Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claims.
Under the previous backdating rules, benefit payment could be backdated for 12 months if the claimant could show they had good cause for not claiming benefit earlier.
There are now new rules for backdating a claim, depending on whether the customer is of working age or Pension Credit age.
Working Age Customers (women aged 18 – 60, men aged 18 – 65)
- The maximum period for which Housing and Council Tax Benefit claims may be backdated has reduced to 6 months.
- The customer will need to show good cause for not claiming earlier.
Pension Credit Age Customers
- The maximum period for which Housing and Council Tax Benefit claims may be backdated has reduced to 3 months.
- The customer does not have to show good cause for not claiming earlier.
Read more about backdating and the new rules.
Local Housing Allowance
Since 7 April 2008 there has been a change to the way in which we work out how much Housing Benefit we can pay some of our claimants. This is known as Local Housing Allowance (LHA), and it affects people who live in, or move to, privately rented accommodation (but not Housing Associations) who make a new claim for Housing Benefit. This includes a claim made following a change of address.
The LHA rate is the same for all tenants with the same circumstances and is worked out based on the size of the household and not the rent. Claimants who are under 25 years old, are single and do not have any dependents can only get the LHA shared room rate.
Read more about Local Housing Allowance.
What other changes have occurred recently?
For more news and information about what has affected Housing and Council Tax Benefit in recent years, have a look at What Happened in Previous Years?