Council Tax will reduce for 34,000 Harlow households

The total amount Harlow residents will pay in Council Tax from 1 April 2022 has been set and it will include a one-off reduction of up to £50 from Harlow Council.

Every occupied home that pays Council Tax on 1 April 2022 will receive a reduction from Harlow Council, which was agreed in February as part of the council’s budget for 2022 to 2023.

In addition, around 34,000 homes in Bands A to D will also receive a £150 Council Tax payment from the government to help with rising energy costs. This does not need to be paid back and is in addition to the autumn £200 energy bill discount.

This year Essex County Council will increase its share by 4.49%, the Essex Police & Crime Commissioner will increase Essex Police’s share by 4.79% and Essex Fire Service by 1.95%. Despite these increases 34,000 households in Harlow will pay less Council Tax than they did last year.

The Harlow Council Tax bill for 2022 to 2023 will be made up as follows:

Councillor Russell Perrin, Leader of Harlow Council, said: “Our Revenues and Benefits Team are now working hard on preparing the new Council Tax bills which will include a reduction of up to £50 from Harlow Council and will show directly on the bill as an efficiency dividend.

“The Revenues and Benefits Team is also working to prepare to make the payment of the additional £150 rebate from the government for those council taxpayers in Bands A to D. For lower income households living in Bands E to H there is additional government money available to ensure that they too can benefit from a further reduction in their Council Tax. The payments will be processed as quickly as possible once full government guidance has been released.

“Our reduction and the government rebate are worth £200 to most Harlow Council taxpayers providing much-needed cost of living help for Harlow families and individuals at this difficult time. Despite Essex County Council, the Police and Fire Service increasing their shares of the Council Tax bill 34,000 homes, 90% of households in Harlow, will pay less Council Tax than they did last year.

“We also plan to freeze our share of the Council Tax bill until 2025, which will keep any overall increases in the bill down so that we can continue to do our bit to support families.

“As well as a Council Tax reduction we will also be making record investments in 2022 to 2023 to regenerate, renew and restore pride in our town and improve the services that our residents receive from Harlow Council. We are doing all of this with no cuts to services, no job losses and no detrimental impact on the council’s finances in the future.”

Council Tax help and support

Residents can pay their bill over 12 months between April and March rather than over 10 months. Please contact: [email protected] before 1 May 2022

Residents who are struggling to pay their Council Tax or rent should visit www.harlow.gov.uk/benefits

Residents can also manage their Council Tax online and sign up to get their bill online at https://selfserve.harlow.gov.uk/MyAccounts

For information email [email protected], visit www.harlow.gov.uk/council-tax or call 01279 446655.

Harlow Council Tax reduction explained

The one-off £50 reduction (or a proportional amount according to the proportion of Council Tax paid) will come off the overall Council Tax bill and will be shown on the bill as an efficiency dividend. Not all residents will be eligible to receive a payment as the reduction will only apply to those who pay Council Tax. For example, those receiving a 100% reduction, those living in entirely student accommodation or where the bill payer is not resident at the property will not be eligible.