Christmas and New Year information
Find out all the information you need about our services over the Christmas and New Year period. This includes our opening times, waste collection days, and how to contact us out of hours.
Make a claim for Housing Benefit
Who can claim, how to make a claim for Housing Benefit and supporting documentation you need to provide.
After your have applied
We aim to assess your claim within 14 days of receiving all the necessary information.
We will give you a decision in writing about your claim. If you disagree with it, you can ask us to look at it again within one month of the date of the decision letter.
You can contact us to:
- ask us to explain our decision
- ask us to look at your claim again or
- appeal against our decision
You must be the person affected by our decision to ask us for any of these options.
If you’re not happy with the decision
You can ask us to give you a statement in writing to explain how we made our decision. This does not affect your right to appeal against our decision. The time we take to provide the statement will mean you have more time to ask us to look at our decision again or appeal to the Tribunal Service.
Appeal a Housing Benefit decision
If your benefits do not cover your full rent
A Discretionary Housing payment can be made to help make up any shortfall in the amount of housing costs included in your Universal Credit and your rent, help towards moving costs, or deposits required to move to more suitable accommodation, that may be more affordable to you.