THE borough council is to hold a public consultation on plans to introduce a new income banded council tax support scheme for applicants of working age.
If agreed the move will see the borough’s poorest households receive 100 per cent relief on their council tax from April 2021.
Currently even the poorest in Redditch have to pay at least 20 per cent of their council tax.
But last Tuesday’s council executive meeting heard this often led to costly court actions and debts that were simply unrecoverable, resulting in them having to be written off altogether.
Councillors heard the proposed new system would not only save time and administrative costs, but, in the light of the impact of Covid-19 and the impending ending of the furlough scheme, help the hardest hit residents of Redditch.
Currently the Council Tax Reduction scheme costs just over £5m – an amount shared out among the precepting authorities according to their share of the tax collected – the Borough Council 13 per cent, Worcestershire County Council 70 per cent, West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner 12 per cent and Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service five per cent.
However, as the collecting authority, Redditch bears all the costs of bringing the tax in from residents.
Since its introduction in 2013, central government has gradually cut the funding for the council tax reduction scheme.
A further layer of cost and administrative time has been added by the complexities of Universal Credit.
The new scheme would instead divide council tax relief into four wide income bans, from 100 per cent, that is paying nothing, to 25 per cent, cutting the need for constant alterations to the benefit given.
Proposed by Councillor Mike Rouse and seconded by Council Leader Coun Matt Dormer, the measure was unanimously approved to go out for consultation.
