By Jason Lewis, Local Democracy Reporter
New additional support could be given to Southampton’s 10,000 poorest households with the city council consulting on making changes to the council tax reduction scheme.
• How much will your council tax bill go up by this year
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Simon Letts, councillor responsible for finance, said the proposal could save households up to £200 a year.
The current scheme came into effect in 2013 after the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government scrapped the national council tax benefit scheme and replaced it with schemes designed and managed by local authorities.
In Southampton, the requirement is for working-age residents to pay a minimum of 25 per cent of their council tax bill.
Cllr Letts said: “We think that is too much and we want to bring in a scheme and we’re going to consult on it that actually reduces that significantly and in effect it will save the 10,000 poorest households in the city well over £100, maybe up to £200 depending on the council tax band of the property they live in.
“We think that is the correct approach to council tax.”
Cllr Letts said the Labour administration wanted to review the policy and look to relax it.
He said detail of what requirement would be included in any new scheme was still to be determined.
The Peartree ward member said: “If we have resources to spare, if we have money available, instead of giving everybody a cut regardless of how wealthy they are, we should focus those resources on the poorest in our community.
“That will be the Labour approach to council tax going forward.”
The announcement on potential changes to the council tax reduction scheme came during the budget debate at full council on Wednesday, February 25.
Labour’s proposed council tax increase of 4.99 per cent in 2026/27 was approved.
The administration’s medium-term financial strategy included increasing council tax by this level – the highest without requiring a referendum – every year through to 2029/30.
How much will your council tax bill go up by this year
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