Consultation on Council Tax Support scheme

We are making changes to our Council Tax Support scheme. As part of these changes, we held a consultation so residents in North Norfolk could share their views.

This consultation is now closed. 

What is the Council Tax Support scheme?

The Council Tax Support scheme under review is the help provided to working-age people on low incomes to pay their Council Tax.

Council Tax Support for low-income pensioners (66 years or over) is decided by central government and is therefore unaffected.

Until April 2013, there was a national scheme called Council Tax Benefit. The government made local councils responsible for replacement schemes from 1 April 2013 and reduced funding to support the schemes. Since then, funding has decreased further. We also need to make changes to keep the Council Tax Support scheme in line with Housing Benefit, which we also administer to keep costs low.

Decisions about changes to the scheme need to be considered alongside the wider challenges local authorities face.

As government funding continues to decrease, we need to strike a balance between a revised scheme that is fair and affordable for those who receive support, and also for all our residents who receive council services. However, we remain committed to providing the maximum level of support for those with the lowest income.

What did we consult about?

We asked for views on several proposals to change the scheme.

The options included:

• introducing a flat rate non-dependent deduction of £10 per week for each adult
• removing the additional earnings disregard of £17.10 a week from earnings
• reducing the time we can backdate an award of Council Tax Support

What was the outcome?

We received a total of 96 responses by the closing date of Sunday 24 November 2024.

View the following reports showing the results and recommendations from the consultation:

• Council Tax Support Scheme - Consultation Evaluation (2025-26) (doc)
• Appendix D: Council Tax Support Scheme - Full Results 2025-26 (PDF)

The proposed changes to the Council Tax Support Scheme 2025/26 were approved by Full Council on Wednesday 29 January 2025.