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.
Report a change in your circumstances
If anything happens which might affect how much benefit you get, you must tell us immediately.
How to tell us about change of circumstance
Tell us about a change in the area that you live in:
Allerdale area: report a change
Carlisle area: report a change
Copeland area: report a change
If you need help, you can contact the team in your area
What you’ll need to provide
You must send original documents to prove any change in your income, savings, accommodation or the circumstances of other people in your home.
If you cannot provide proof of the change now you should still report the change immediately.
Please give an indication of when you will be able to provide proof of the change, and send the proof as soon as you can. We will write to you if we require any additional information.
If you don't tell us about a change
If you don't tell us about a change and we pay you too much benefit, you may have to pay it back.
It is now a criminal offence for a person, dishonestly or without reasonable excuse, to fail to notify us of a change of circumstances that they are required by regulations to report. This applies to landlords as well as claimants.
Even if you notify the Department for Work and Pensions or the Inland Revenue of any change, you'll need to let us know separately.
Changes that impact your benefits
Some examples of changes to be reported are as follows:
- you start or stop getting Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Universal Credit or Pension Credit
- you start or stop getting Working or Child Tax credits
- you are now receiving Carers Allowance because you're looking after someone that is not a member of your household
- the amount of money you or your partner gets changes
- the money non-dependants get changes
- there are any other changes in the money people in your home get. For example, someone starts getting Personal Independence Payments
You must also tell us if:
- you change your address
- there is a change in your rent
- the number of people in your home changes
- you, or your partner, go into hospital
- you, or your partner, become a student, or stop being a student
- the amount of savings or capital you have changes
If you are in any doubt about whether or not you should report a change, contact us.
If the change increases your entitlement
If you have a change in your circumstance which increases your entitlement to Housing Benefit and do not tell us within one month, the change will only be effective from the date you notify the Benefit Team.
If the change reduces your entitlement
It will be applied from the date of the change and we will require you to repay any benefit which you have been overpaid.
If you temporarily leave your home
You can continue to receive Housing Benefit if you are temporarily away from home for up to 4, 13, 26 or 52 weeks, depending on your circumstances.