County Durham council tax support changes approved

Durham County Council agreed to change its discount scheme at a meeting on Wednesday (December 10), meaning most residents will have to pay at least 10 per cent of their council tax bills. 

The proposed changes will ensure all residents contribute to the cost of services provided by the council. 

Council leaders said the move to a banded scheme was “increasingly necessary” due to funding pressures. 

Councillor Nicola Lyons, Reform cabinet member for communities and civic resilience, said: “The current style of the scheme and the speed of migration to Universal Credit have resulted in complexities for residents. Utilising the scheme and administration has become unsustainable.”

A public consultation, which ran between July and September, received 1,856 responses and found respondents largely supported the changes. About 30 per cent of respondents said the support should remain at 100 per cent, with the majority in favour of a 75 per cent cap being introduced. 

However, cabinet members opted for the bill-paying option, which supports residents the most. 

The scheme was introduced in 2013 to offer eligible working-age residents discounts on their council tax bills and currently supports 31,200 claimants. The current uncapped system means 84 per cent of claimants have no council tax charges to pay. 

Changes to the scheme will avoid multiple bills being issued and will allow the council to make administrative savings. It will also bring the local authority’s council tax discount in line with neighbouring authorities. 

People living in Peterlee, Stanley, Bishop Auckland, and Ferryhill are set to be impacted the most due to the large proportion of council tax discount claimants, the local authority said.

The latest proposals do not impact pension-age claimants, as their discounts follow nationally set rules. 

Councillor Darren Grimes, the council’s deputy leader, said the changes meant the scheme would become “fair, efficient and effective”.

He added: “The overriding message from the public was clear – everyone should be contributing to the services they use.”

The Reform-led authority faced opposition from rival councillors, who urged the council to maintain the 100 per cent support and alter the financial contributions linked to the scheme. 

Liberal Democrat Councillor Mark Wilkes warned the county’s most vulnerable residents would be impacted.

He said: “Taxing somebody who doesn’t have money to pay it doesn’t work and it is immoral. It’s simply illogical to try and squeeze money out of somebody who doesn’t have any.”

Changes to the council tax reduction scheme were approved by 58 votes to 26 and are due to come into force in April 2026.