Our work makes it easier for people to get Council Tax support

Welsh Government announces plans that could see 60,000 more households get Council Tax support

More than 60,000 extra households could be set to receive support with the Council Tax costs from April next year following a recent Welsh Government announcement.

For a number of years, the Bevan Foundation has been calling on the Welsh Government to establish a Welsh Benefits System. We have argued that doing so would enable the Welsh Government to develop an effective, coherent and seamless system of support for people on low incomes that helps to lift them out of poverty.

Significant progress has been made over recent months. In February 2024, the Welsh Government published a new Welsh Benefits Charter and established a steering group to oversee its work to streamline Welsh Benefits. This summer, the Welsh Government has taken a significant step forward along the journey to make it easier for people access the help that they are entitled to. 

The Welsh Government has announced that from April 2025 that a person in receipt of Universal Credit may be recognised by a council as having made an application for the Council Tax Reduction Scheme. This means that it will be much more likely that someone in receipt of Universal Credit will not have to make a separate application for help with their Council Tax.

Previous work undertaken by the Bevan Foundation and Policy in Practice suggests that such a change would make it much easier for people to access support with their Council Tax. This one change could increase take up from current levels of 55% to 65% to around 90%, meaning that more than 60,000 extra households could get the support they need, putting more than £67m back into the pockets of low income households across Wales. 

The Bevan Foundation is delighted to see its work have such a positive influence and will be continuing its work on Welsh Benefits over the coming months.