What's new in Benefits

We feel that is it important to provide you with details of the latest changes to the services that we offer to make it easier for you to get the help and advice that you may need.

It is also important that we provide our customers with details about any relevant changes in the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit legislation.  We hope that our 'What's New In Benefits' page does just this and if you would like to become more involved in how our services are provided to you, please contact us at benefits@broxbourne.gov.uk

Benefit Changes from April 2012

The Government announced in late December 2011 that Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates will be frozen at their April 2012 rate for one year.  The April 2012 LHA rates will be published in late March and claimants will then know what the rate will be for the whole year, without them changing month by month.  When a new claim is made or a claimant changes address, on or after 1 April 2012, housing benefit entitlement will be based on the frozen April 2012 rate.  From April 2013, LHA rates will be increased by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year, in the same way that allowances, benefits and tax credits are increased. Please the Local Housing Allowance Rates page for further details of the current rates

In the June 2010 Budget, the Government announced that non-dependent deductions would be increased over the following three years.  A non-dependant is someone who normally lives with the housing benefit claimant but is not dependent on them, such as an adult son, daughter, relative or friend.

The first of the increases came into effect in April 2011 and saw a 27% increase in the previous rates.  The deductions effective from April 2012 have now been announced and will increase by 22% on last year’s rates. Please see our Non-Dependant page for the new non-dependant rates.

Benefit Newsletter

The newsletter has been produced to keep you informed about the service, changes to benefit legislation, latest project developments and to seek suggestions on how services to you can be improved.  You can read the latest issue here. 

Housing Benefit is changing if you are single and under 35 years old

Currently, single people under 25 years old without dependent children are restricted to the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate of a room in shared accommodation. The Government is extending the age group to under 35 years old from 1 January 2012.

At present, the LHA rules allow us to use the LHA rate of a one bedroom property based on the fact that you are single and aged over 25 years old and living in a one bedroom property. Because you are over 25 but under 35 years old, this change will affect you.

The LHA rates are set on a monthly basis so we do not yet know what the rate will be for January 2012 onwards but as a comparison, the LHA rate for a room in shared accommodation for November 2011 is £73.42 per week (£318.15 per month equivalent). The rates do not change significantly so this is a reasonable prospective figure.

The date this change will affect you very much depends on when you initially claimed HB with us. If you first claimed after 1 April 2011, this change will affect you from the date we review your claim. This is known as the anniversary date and is 52 weeks from the date you first claimed HB.

If you were claiming HB before 1 April 2011, you are protected from this change for an additional 9 months from your anniversary date. This is because you already fell under protection introduced by the Government for changes that took effect from 1 April 2011 and these have been carried forward.

If you move home or have a break in your HB after 1 January 2012, you automatically go onto the new shared room LHA rate and all protection is lost

What can I do if I am affected by these changes

We have a limited amount of money called the Discretionary Housing Payment fund. This is used to make small top up payments to people where their rent costs are higher than their HB and would experience material hardship to meet those costs. Anyone can apply for additional help from this fund but if successful, these awards are limited in terms of the amount and length of time we can help.

Other things you may need to consider is trying to negotiate a lower rent charge with your landlord. You may also wish to contact the Councils Housing Needs department for help and advice regarding tenancies and housing issues. You can ring the main switchboard on 01992 785555 and ask for the Housing Needs department or you can come to the Housing Benefit / Housing Needs shared reception area on the ground floor at the borough offices between 9.00am to 5.30pm Monday to Thursday and until 5.00pm on a Friday. This is on a first come, first served basis so you may need to wait to be seen.

New online change in circumstances form

Broxbourne Council has introduced a new service for residents claiming housing and/or council tax benefit which allows them to report changes in their circumstances online. The online benefit change in circumstances form will make reporting changes quicker and easier for customers. 

Online benefit claim form

The online benefit claim form is the easiest and quickest way to claim housing and/or council tax benefit. The secure online facility will allow you to  save a partially completed form to finish later, as well as providing handy tips and hints to make completing the form easier.

Housing Benefit Survey

A survey form was issued recently to some of our customers because we would like to hear your views so that we can ensure the service we provide meets your needs.  You can complete a survey online here.  We will be very happy to hear your views.