Bedford Borough Council is seeking your opinions on the proposals to reduce the amount of financial support provided as part of the current Council Tax Reduction Scheme.
Have your say on the proposed Council Tax Reduction Scheme to start 1 April 2026
The Council, as a Council Tax billing authority, has a legal obligation to put in place a local Council Tax Reduction Scheme to provide Council Tax Support to working age households on a low income. In the Bedford Borough Council area, almost 10,500 people currently receive Council Tax Reduction, of those 7,200 are working age people. The gross cost of the working age scheme is currently £9.8m in 2025/2026, which is split between the Borough Council (81.49% at £8.0m) and the Fire and Police Authorities and Town/Parish Councils (18.51% at £1.8m).
The current Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme, which has been in place for a number of years, allows for discounts of up to 100% to be awarded to applicants for properties in Council Tax Bands A to D, and for up to 82% for properties in Council Tax Bands E to H.
The Council Tax Reduction Scheme (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2012 requires the Council to calculate entitlement to a Council Tax Support discount in a prescribed manner for applications made by persons of pensionable age. Therefore, this consultation relates to Council Tax Support for working age persons only.
Why we are consulting
As a Council we remain fully committed to providing excellent care and support services for local people. However, the current financial challenges facing all local authorities means we have to explore ways to reduce our costs, including the Council Tax Support Scheme.
A recent Resilience Review conducted by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) identified that the current Council Tax Reduction Scheme is generous in comparison to neighbouring councils and recommended a review of the scheme to ensure that it remains affordable and continues to support the most vulnerable residents of the borough.
A benchmarking exercise has been undertaken which showed variations in how councils have approached the scheme and variations in the maximum awards that apply. The existing scheme in place at Bedford Borough Council is amongst the most generous schemes.
It is therefore proposed to review the amount of financial support offered through the Local Scheme from 1 April 2026, and the proposed scheme has been developed in line with that benchmarking.
The proposed revised scheme will continue to support the most vulnerable applicants in the following ways:
- Income from Child Benefit, Fostering Allowance, and maintenance payments for a child will continue to be disregarded.
- No changes are proposed to the disability benefits that are currently disregarded.
How to have your say
Bedford Borough Council is seeking your opinions on the proposals to reduce the amount of financial support provided as part of the current Council Tax Reduction Scheme. Any comments received may be published but personal details will not.
We are particularly interested to hear whether you support or oppose the proposals set out in this consultation and any comments, ideas or alternative suggestions you may have.
Respond online to Council Tax Reduction Scheme consultation
If you are unable to respond using the online form you can request a paper copy by emailing CTRConsultation@bedford.gov.uk.
Paper copies of the survey forms are also available in our libraries, Borough Hall reception and the Bedford Borough Hub on Horne Lane.
What happens next
This consultation runs from 1 October to 12 November 2025.
The outcome of the consultation and recommendations will be considered in November.
Data protection
Your information will be stored and shared in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). Under the UK GDPR, Bedford Borough Council needs to inform you of the reasons why we are capturing your data and what we will do with your data. Any personal data collected and/or processed under this policy/procedure will be dealt with in accordance with relevant legislation and the Council’s Data Protection Policy.
Data is held securely and accessed by, and disclosed only to, individuals where relevant to this policy/procedure. To view the Council’s current privacy notices, visit www.bedford.gov.uk/gdprprivacy.