Housing benefit and council tax support

Understand the decision on council tax support claims

When we deal with your council tax support claim we will notify you of the outcome by sending you a letter, email or revised council tax bill. 

If you do not understand the outcome or want to know more about it, please contact us for an explanation. You should do this within one month of the date on your letter, email or bill.

How to contact us

• Email: benefits@rbwm.gov.uk (please quote the claim number from your letter in your email).
• Telephone: 01628 683800.
• By post: Revenues & Benefits, Town Hall, St Ives Road, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 1RF.
• In person: Appointments are available on request, please contact us using one of the methods above for further information and support.

Independent advice

If you wish, you can seek advice on your claim from a law centre or third party such as the Citizen’s Advice Bureau. They will be able to assist you with understanding your claim and to help you with any further queries that you may want to send to us.

If you think the decision is wrong

Once the decision has been explained to you, if you still disagree then you can ask us to reconsider the decision. A request for a reconsideration needs to be made in writing (e-mail is acceptable) and submitted within one month of either the date on your decision letter or the date on any further explanation letter that may have been sent to you.

Reconsiderations

If you ask us to reconsider your claim then the matter will be looked at by a different member of staff to the one who made the original decision. We will review what has happened so far and look at any new details or information that you have provided. There will be one of three outcomes:

• The original decision will remain unchanged;
• The decision will be changed to your advantage – meaning more Council Tax Support;
• The decision will be changed to your disadvantage – meaning less Council Tax Support.

We will notify you of the outcome in writing.

If you do not receive a response from us within two months of the date upon which your request for a reconsideration was received by us then you can appeal directly to the Valuation Tribunal.

Further appeal

If the decision is unchanged and you still disagree with it, you have the right to appeal and have your case heard by the Valuation Tribunal. This tribunal is entirely separate from the council and is made up of people experienced in hearing appeals. Their website is www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk.

Any request for an appeal needs to be sent to the Valuation Tribunal within two months of the date on the letter or e-mail notifying you of the outcome of your request for the claim to be reconsidered. We will then send the case to the Valuation Tribunal Service.

When an appeal is sent to the Valuation Tribunal, a copy of all paperwork will also be sent to you. You will then be contacted by the Valuation Tribunal who will advise you as to how the case will proceed. Any hearing that subsequently takes place is open to the public.

An appeal hearing is your opportunity to explain your position, ask any questions and to state why you believe that the decision we have made is wrong. The tribunal will look at the case as a whole and make a decision based on the law, your comments, and those made by us (the council).

The decision of the tribunal will be sent to you in writing.