Working-age claimants who pay nothing now could pay half their bill from April 2027, £13.25 a week in Band A. Over 6,500 affected; comment by 4 November.
Herefordshire’s poorest working-age households could start paying council tax again from April 2027. The council is consulting on cutting its Council Tax Reduction scheme, which currently covers up to 100 per cent of the bill.
Two options are on the table. Support could fall to 80 per cent, so every working-age claimant pays at least a fifth of their bill. Or it could fall to 50 per cent, so they pay at least half.
The consultation closes on Wednesday 4 November 2026. Pensioners are not affected.
What is being proposed
The council’s consultation page, published on 16 September, sets out five changes for working-age claimants:
- a lower maximum award, cut from 100 per cent to either 80 or 50 per cent
- a Band C cap: if you live in a Band D home or above, your help would be worked out as if you lived in Band C, and you would pay the difference
- a flat £15 a week non-dependant deduction for each other adult living with you, such as a grown-up son or daughter
- a £5 minimum award: anyone entitled to less than £5 a week would get nothing
- shorter absence rules for time spent outside Great Britain
What it would cost you
The council gives one worked figure. For a Band A home, the change would cost £5.44 a week if support falls to 80 per cent, rising to £13.25 a week at 50 per cent.
Over a year that is roughly £283 or £689, on our arithmetic from the council’s weekly figures.
The other changes hit particular groups:
| Proposal | Who it affects | Council’s estimate |
|---|---|---|
| £15 non-dependant deduction | 986 households | Average rise of £10.89 a week |
| £5 minimum award | About 187 claimants | Removed from the scheme |
| Band C cap | Claimants in Band D and above | Pay the gap between Band C and their band |
The non-dependant figures are based on 2025/26 claims, the council says. Today the deduction ranges from nothing, for an adult on Universal Credit with no earnings, to £15.95 a week for one earning over £605.
Why the council wants to do it
The scheme costs about £16.4 million a year. It supports more than 6,500 working-age adults and 4,700 pensioners, and the council says that cost “is funded by all taxpayers in Herefordshire”.
The proposals are part of closing the 2027/28 budget gap. The council points to lower government grant under the Fair Funding Review, and to rising costs in adult and children’s services and temporary accommodation.
Its own figures for the extra council tax each change would bring in:
- cut support to 80 per cent: £2.3 million a year
- cut support to 50 per cent: £5.1 million a year
- £15 non-dependant deduction: £0.6 million a year
How generous the scheme is now
Herefordshire set its scheme at 80 per cent in December 2015. It raised it to 100 per cent in 2021/22, in response to the pandemic, and has kept it there.
That means a working-age claimant on the lowest income can currently pay nothing at all, whatever band their home is in. A 50 per cent scheme would be a bigger cut than simply returning to the pre-pandemic level.
The rest of the scheme stays the same under the proposals. Savings above £6,000 still rule out any reduction. War pensions are still ignored in full. The discretionary hardship fund stays.
The absence rules
The council also wants to bring working-age rules into line with those for pensioners:
- Trips abroad: the limit falls from 13 weeks to four, extendable to eight only for a family bereavement.
- Medical treatment or care: 52 weeks only if it is in Great Britain; 26 weeks if abroad.
- Fleeing domestic violence: 52 weeks if you stay in Great Britain; 26 weeks if you leave it.
Absences within Great Britain stay at 13 weeks.
What it means for you
- If you get Council Tax Reduction and are under pension age, this is about you. On the 50 per cent option, someone in Band A who pays nothing now would pay around £13 a week.
- If an adult son, daughter or lodger lives with you, the flat £15 deduction could raise your bill even if the main cut is modest.
- If you are over pension age, nothing changes.
- Have your say by Wednesday 4 November through the council’s online survey.
- If you are struggling to pay now, the council’s Council Tax Reduction page explains how to claim. A claim is separate from Universal Credit.
What happens next
The council says the responses will feed into budget setting. The 2027/28 budget is due to be set in February 2027, and any changes would start on 1 April 2027.
For what each band pays now, including the parish charges, see our Hereford council tax bands page.
Sources
- Herefordshire Council, Council Tax Reduction scheme consultation, published 16 September 2026, read 20 October 2026: the options, costs, claimant numbers, Band A figures, deductions and timetable.
- Herefordshire Council, current Council Tax Reduction scheme document.
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