Council Tax

Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme 100 per cent discount for 2023-24

Extra Council Tax support has been given to thousands of low-income households in West Suffolk to help them with the challenges of the cost-of-living.

In December 2022, West Suffolk Council announced that following the backing of a public consultation, it would be increasing the maximum award of Council Tax reduction available to households from 91.5 percent to 100 percent. This is for the tax year 2023/24 only.

This has meant that 4700 households of working age in West Suffolk are now paying low or no Council Tax having received a further 8.5 percent reduction to their Council Tax. Pensioners in the scheme already receive a maximum reduction of 100 percent on their Council Tax.

Alongside the increase in Council Tax reduction agreed by West Suffolk, many households are also receiving extra help after the Government announced on 19 December £100m in funding to enable councils to provide additional Council Tax support to the most vulnerable households while ensuring that key services that people rely on, can continue to be delivered.

In West Suffolk, the total allocation under the Government’s Council Tax Support Fund scheme was £416,940.05.

As of 20 March 2023, £183,628 of this had been awarded as reductions on the Council Tax bills of 2508 West Suffolk households in the Local Council Tax Reduction scheme. This reduction of up to £80 per household, was awarded through the annual billing process. Since then, a further £9,439.61 of support has been applied to new applicants to the Local Council Tax Reduction scheme in West Suffolk.

The remaining money - £40,242.44 - will be used throughout the year in West Suffolk to provide support new applicants to the Local Council Tax Reduction scheme, and the households who are already in the scheme but who need additional support in the form of an Exceptional Hardship Payment. 

For further details visit the Anglia Revenues Partnership website.