Council Tax Reduction Scheme Appeals

If you are not happy with a decision that has been made in relation to Council Tax Reduction then you can:

  • request an explanation of why a particular decision was made (statement of reasons)
  • ask us to look at the decision again (lodge grievance)
  • appeal directly to the Valuation Tribunal if you are not satisfied with the outcome of your grievance

Ask for an explanation

If you do not understand how we have worked out your Council Tax Reduction, or you want to know more about any part of the calculation, you can ask for an explanation. You must do this within one month of the date on your notification letter.

To request a statement of reasons you can complete the appeals form located at the bottom of the page, or simply submit a letter or email.

We will provide you with a written explanation of how your Council Tax Reduction has been worked out (a statement of reasons).

When you get the explanation, if you disagree with the decision or think we have made a mistake you can ask us to look at our decision again.

Ask us to look at our decision again

If you think we have made a mistake you can ask us to look at our decision again, this is called a grievance. We will check your application thoroughly and take account of any information you have given.

To ask us to look at our decision again you can complete the appeals form which is located at the bottom of this page, or simply submit a letter or email.

We will look at our decision again and if we decide it is wrong we will put it right and send you a new decision letter. If we do not think we have made a mistake and do not change our decision we will write to you to let you know.

You can then accept our decision or you can appeal against the decision.

Appeal against the decision

An appeal against a Council Tax Reduction decision must be made directly to the Valuation Tribunal within two months of us writing to you about your grievance. You can also appeal directly to the Valuation Tribunal if we have not responded to you within two months of you writing to us about your grievance.

The Valuation Tribunal will only consider your appeal if you have first written to the council to ask for your decision to be looked at again.

Details of how to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal will be sent with your grievance decision letter. This information can also be found on the Valuation Tribunal website www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk

Links to the online appeal form

Please ensure you are appealing to your correct authority. Should you be unsure, you can check a recent Council Tax or Benefits letter where this should be stated.