Council Tax Bands and Charges
Council Tax Bands
The Valuation Office Agency has put each property in to a band. The bands based on how much the property would have sold for on 1 April 1991 and is not affected by changes in house prices. To look up your Council Tax band, see the DirectGov online look-up tool.
To see our latest charges, please see our Council Tax Amounts 2024/25 page.
| Band | Property Valuation on 1 April 1991 |
|---|---|
| A | up to and including £40,000 |
| B | £40,0001 to £52,000 |
| C | £52,000 to £68,000 |
| D | £68,001 to £88,000 |
| E | £88,001 to £120,000 |
| F | £120,001 to £160,000 |
| G | £160,001 to £320,000 |
| H | More than £320,000 |
New Properties
All new properties are banded as if they had existed on 1 April 1991, not what they are actually sold for.
Property Improvements
Later improvements, such as an extension or conservatory will not immediately affect the banding. However, if the property is sold it may be re-banded. The Valuation Office Agency will also check for any reduction in the property value - e.g. part of it has been demolished. If it is decided that the property should be re-banded this will take effect immediately.
Appeal against your Council Tax Band
You can check your band and those of neighbouring properties on the Valuation Office Agency website. If you feel your band is wrong, you can talk to the Valuation Office and it costs nothing.
Call your local office on 03000 501501
If you decide to appeal against your council tax band, you must continue to pay your bill. If you are having problems with payment, contact the council to discuss payment options.
Council Tax Charges and Bills
Council Tax bills are sent out once a year. The way in which local authorities bill and collect council tax is set out in parliamentary legislation.
Recovery action is accumulative this means that where a council tax instalment is not paid as shown on the front of the bill recovery action commences with the issue of a first reminder, where the account is brought up to date and payments continue to be received as shown on the front of the bill no further action is taken.
Where a first reminder is issued, and a payment is made to bring the account up to date should a further instalment not be made on the due date the balance of the account will become due in full.
Your Council Tax bill does not include any outstanding amounts from your previous bills.
Any amount outstanding from previous years should be paid in accordance to the bill issued last financial year or by special payment arrangement. If you cannot afford to do this you should Contact Us immediately.
Who pays Council Tax
The person who must pay the Council Tax is someone who lives in the property and who is in the highest category of residence.
Read down the list below from A to E until you find a category that applies to someone who lives in your property; this will be the person who must pay the Council Tax.
If two or more people are in that category, they are all jointly responsible for paying.
Liability for Council Tax
A - The owner or freeholder of the property
B - The leaseholder of the property
C - The tenant (includes a council tenant) of the property
D - A licensee
E - Someone who lives in the property
Even if they do not live there, the owner of the property will have to pay the Council Tax if:-
- the property is no one's main home, or
- it is a multiple occupation property (bedsits/shared houses), or
- it is a residential care or nursing home, or
- it is occupied by a religious community or minister of religion, or
- only domestic service staff live in the property, or
- it is only occupied by asylum seekers
There are lots of different ways you can pay your Council Tax. If you currently pay by Direct Debit there is no need to do anything - your payments will automatically be adjusted and continue.
Exception to the rule
Certain rules apply for example where someone suffers from a severe mental impairment or where a full time student lives with someone who is not a student. For more details, see our Discounts, Exemptions and Disregards pages on the Council Tax page
How the amount payable can be reduced
You can receive a discount or be given exemption from paying Council Tax depending on your circumstances.
Council Tax is worked out assuming that at least two adults (persons aged 18 or over) are living in the property.
We can:
- Give you disablement relief if you or someone who lives with you is disabled and certain conditions apply.
- Give you a discount of:
- 25% if you are the only adult aged 18 year or over living in your home
- 25% if all but one person living in your home falls into one of the groups of people who are not counted
- 50% if everyone living in your home is not counted
- 50% if you own a property that is no one's main home, which is not exempt and, you are required to live elsewhere in accommodation provided by your employer under the terms of your conditions of employment.
- Give you a Council Tax Property Exemptions if your property qualifies for it.
If you are on a low income and have little savings or you are disabled, you may also be entitled to Council Tax Support (commonly known as Council Tax benefit). If you are entitled to a discount or disablement relief, you may still get benefit on your reduced bill.
To apply for the right discount or exemption, see our Council Tax page for a wealth of different options.
