Claiming Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction

Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction can help pay your rent and/or Council Tax. Universal Credit has been rolled out across Doncaster and you may have to claim Universal Credit instead of Housing Benefit for help with your rent. You will still need to make a claim Council Tax Reduction if you receive, or are making a claim for, Universal Credit.

You can claim Housing Benefit:

  • If you (and your partner if you have one) are the qualifying age to claim Pension Credit*, or
  • You are living in supported or exempt accommodation, or

If the above do not apply to you; you need to claim Universal Credit to help with your rent. There is more information about this on the Gov.uk Universal Credit page.  

*If you are aged 65 or older you can use this link to check if you have reached the qualifying age for Pension Credit on Gov.uk

 Use the Calculator below to find out how much Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction you could get.

Alternatively, go straight to our online form to apply. You can use the form to claim either, or both Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction.

If you have already partially completed a form and are coming back to finish the application, please visit the link below and re-enter your ten character unique code to retrieve your application.

If you need help to complete the online application form, or you are unable to apply online, contact the Benefits helpline on 01302 735336 option 1.  

Information and Proof

Our claim form tells you what information and proof we need. Do not delay making a claim, even if you do not have all the proof we need. You can send the proof you have straight away and send the rest within one month of making the claim.

Please make sure you show us original documents; we cannot accept photocopies or scanned documents. You can call into the Council's Civic Office in Waterdale, Doncaster. We will take the details we need and give you the documents back straight away. You can post proof to us and we will photocopy your documents and send them back to you straight away. Please do not send valuable items through the post. 


Your benefit decision

When we have dealt with your claim, we will write and tell you:

• how much benefit or reduction you will get
• when your award will start from
• how long we will pay you for
• what information we have used to work out your benefit, such as what income and savings we have used
• what you should do if you think your benefit or reduction is wrong

You will normally get our letter within seven days of the date we dealt with your claim. 

Paying your benefit and reduction

If you pay rent to the council, we will pay your housing benefit into the rent account you have with St Leger Homes.

If you pay rent to a private landlord, we will normally pay your housing benefit every four weeks. This is usually paid directly to you, although in some circumstances it can be paid to your landlord.

We pay housing benefit direct into a bank account (by BACS).

If you pay Council Tax and are granted a council tax reduction a revised bill will be issued.

Changes in your circumstances

You must tell us straight away if any of your circumstances change. For example, you must tell us if:

  • you, or your partner, stop or start getting Universal Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Pension Credit (Guarantee) or any other state benefit
  • your wages, or your partner's wages go up or down
  • you or your partner start or stop work
  • any other income you receive goes up or down
  • you or your partner start to receive a new income
  • the number of people living with you changes
  • the circumstances of people living with you changes
  • any of your children leave school
  • you move (this includes a flat or room at the same address)
  • you have another child
  • your rent changes
  • your childcare costs change (if we are deducting these as an expense)
This list is not exhaustive. You can phone us to report a change on 01302 735336 or write to us at the Civic Office, Waterdale, Doncaster, DN1 3BU. 

If the change in circumstances means you would be financially worse off, it may be that we can pay you more benefit. However, usually we can only pay you the extra from the date your circumstances change if you tell us about the change within one month. If you don't tell us with that time, we will normally only pay you the extra from when you tell us.

Checking your benefit

We can carry on paying your benefit or support for as long as your circumstances stay the same.

We will need to check the information we are using to work out your benefits from time to time. To do this, we may phone you, visit you or send you a form to fill in. You must give us the information we need when we contact you so we can carry on paying you benefit.

 

 

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Last updated: 01 August 2023 17:15:57

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