Wandsworth Council has proposed a redesign of its Council Tax Reduction Scheme for working-age residents on low incomes, with changes planned from April 2027 if approved. The proposal would remove 100 per cent reductions for working-age households, while introducing new income bands intended to bring some households just above current eligibility thresholds into the scheme.
The council says the changes are not final. It plans to consult residents shortly, then make a decision after considering responses. Pension-age households would remain under nationally set rules, and households made up entirely of full-time students are also outside the proposed changes.
Support would change, not disappear
At present, some working-age households can have their eligible Council Tax bill reduced by 100 per cent. Under the proposal, everyone in the working-age scheme would pay something towards their bill, although the amount would vary with income and household circumstances. The council says people on the lowest incomes would continue to receive the greatest support.
The other major change would extend assistance to certain households that currently receive nothing because their earnings sit just above existing thresholds. New income bands would allow some of those households to qualify for partial support. The council has not yet published a final household-by-household calculation of how much each group would receive; residents will need to assess the detailed consultation proposals and, later, any approved scheme rules.
Council Tax Reduction is different from a single fixed discount applied to everyone. It is means-tested support that reduces the Council Tax liability of qualifying residents. Eligibility and the amount of help depend on the local scheme for working-age people, while pension-age arrangements follow national rules. A change to the local scheme can therefore affect households differently even where their Council Tax bills rise by the same percentage.
Why the council is proposing a transition
The council links the redesign to a projected increase in its Council Tax and to pressure on its finances. It says the tax may need to rise by around 94 per cent in 2027/28 unless central government changes its funding position. That is a forecast, not an already-set bill: the council says final Council Tax levels and budget proposals will go through its formal decision process in February 2027.
To cushion the effect on lower-income residents, the council proposes increasing the scheme’s total support from about £6.9 million now to £12.4 million in 2027/28. It says that amount would then reduce gradually to £7.1 million by 2030/31. The council argues that leaving existing discounts unchanged would create an ongoing annual cost close to £14 million, which it considers unaffordable to maintain alongside other services.
These figures describe the council’s proposed funding path; they do not establish the amount any one household will save or pay. The overall cost of the scheme and the distribution of support between residents are separate questions. Nor does the projected tax increase mean every household’s bill would rise by precisely 94 per cent: actual bills depend on property band, the final tax decision and individual reductions or other reliefs.
Consultation comes before a decision
The next practical step is the promised consultation, which the council says will launch shortly and include a questionnaire. Residents will be able to comment before councillors decide whether to approve the changes. The final rules, including the detailed income bands and how support is calculated, remain subject to that process and the formal decision.
For households currently receiving a full reduction, the central proposed change is that they would begin paying part of their Council Tax. For people just above today’s income limits, the new bands could create eligibility where there is none now. The council has framed the transition as a way to balance continued help for lower-income residents with a contribution from all working-age households and a scheme it says can be sustained over time. Whether that balance is accepted will depend on the consultation and the final decision ahead of the proposed 1 April 2027 start.
