GUIDANCE FOR CARERS
GENERAL:
If you require general information on being a Carer in Hackney, please go to
http://www.hackney.gov.uk/carers.htm .
COUNCIL TAX GUIDANCE FOR CARERS:
Do I pay full Council Tax if a carer lives with me?
If a carer lives with you in your property, and you are the only two residents
over 18 years old, then you may be entitled to a Council Tax Discount of 25%.
To be eligible, the carer:
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must provide at least 35 hours a week of care.
must not be married to you or living with you as a partner.
must not be the parent of the person for whom the care is being
provided, if that person is under 18.
In addition, the person receiving care must be entitled to receive one of the
following:
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higher rate of the care component of Disability Living Allowance
higher rate of Attendance Allowance
an increased Disablement Pension
an increased Constant Attendance Allowance
Do I have to pay Council Tax if I leave my own property empty to provide
care for someone somewhere else?
If you leave your property unnoccupied because you are providing care for
someone elsewhere, you may be exempt from paying Council Tax on your
property. To apply for this exemption, you should initially write to: London
Borough of Hackney, Council Tax Section, Hackney Service Centre, 1 Hillman
Street, London E8 1DY. Your letter should include:
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the date that you vacated your property.
confirmation that your property has remained unoccupied since.
confirmation that you left to provide care for someone elsewhere.
the name of the person for whom you are providing care.
evidence of your occupation of the away address, (such as a personal
bill, etc.).
information about the level and type of care you are providing
confirmation as to whether you intend eventually to return to your own
address.
Provided that proof of eligibility to either the discount or the exemption is
supplied, then either may be awarded retrospectively as far back as 1993.
Should you be dissatisfied with the Council Tax Section's decision in respect
of an application for either a discount or an exemption, you may appeal in
writing to the Hackney Service Centre address given above. The Council will
then review your case and respond. If you remain dissatisfied with the
Council's decision, the response will provide you with full details as to how to
progress your appeal to a Valuation Tribunal, who will then review your case
independently.
For more information about any Council Tax matters, please contact the
Council Tax Section direct, either by telephone on 0208 356 3154 , or by email to council.tax@hackney.gov.uk
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In addition to reductions to the Council Tax liability by way of
Discounts/Exemptions, you may also be eligible to receive Housing and/or
Council Tax Benefit.
HOUSING AND COUNCIL TAX BENEFIT
GUIDANCE FOR CARERS
I am a carer, am I entitled to increased Housing/Council Tax Benefit?
Your entitlement may increase if you are entitled to a “Carer Premium” in your
benefit assessment. Carer Premium is awarded for either or both the claimant
and partner, therefore it can be included twice in one award, where the
claimant and/or partner 
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receives, or has underlying entitlement to, Carer’s Allowance*, or
was entitled, or ceased to have underlying entitlement, to Carers
Allowance within the last eight weeks
Where a person qualifies for more than one state benefit, he/she may receive
only the highest value benefit, but retains an underlying entitlement to all of
the state benefits for which he/she qualifies. Having this underlying
entitlement, as well as the actual receipt of a state benefit, is a qualifying
condition in order to be awarded Carer Premium
* Carer's Allowance was called Invalid Care Allowance before 28th October
2002
Does an award of Carer’s Allowance affect the HB/CTB entitlement of
the person I am caring for?
Yes, there may be an effect, but any backdated award of Carer’s Allowance
for the period before the first payment will be disregarded to ensure that any
overpayments are minimised.
Are there any other ways in which HB/CTB could be higher for carers or
the person they care for?
Non-Dependant Deductions
Your benefit will not be reduced by a “non dependant deduction” if you have a
carer living with you. A non-dependant deduction is a reduction to your benefit
because of another person over 18 being in the property who is not your
partner and who is not dependant on you.
The benefit regulations define a carer as someone who is:
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caring for the claimant or partner.
provided by a charitable or voluntary organisation that charges the
claimant or partner, irrespective of whether financial assistance is
provided to the claimant or partner to pay the charges.
Earned income disregards for carers
The first £20 of the earnings of a carer are disregarded in the HB/CTB
calculation, as opposed to the usual earnings disregard figure of £5 for a
single person and £10 for a couple
For more information about Housing & Council Tax Benefit please contact the
Benefits Service direct, either by telephone on 0208 356 3399, or by e-mail to
benefits.callcentre@hackney.gov.uk
Do I qualify for Carer’s Allowance?
Carer’s Allowance is a state benefit, awarded to a person who is at least 16
years old and who spends at least 35 hours weekly caring for a disabled
person. The carer need not be related to, or live with, the person being cared
for.
Carer’s Allowance is awarded for as long as the carer is providing care for the
disabled person. The ’caring week’ runs from Sunday to Saturday, so that a
carer may be entitled to Carer’s Allowance where the minimum 35 hours care
provision per week is provided over a weekend only.
Carer’s Allowance is a non-Contributory State Benefit, which means that a
person’s National Insurance Contribution record is not taken into account.
To qualify for the allowance, the person providing care must:
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have been resident in Great Britain, Northern Ireland or the Isle of Man
for at least 26 weeks at any time in the 12 months prior to the date of
claim.
not be subject to immigration control.
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be aged at least 16 years,
be caring for a person receiving Attendance Allowance, Constant
Attendance Allowance or Disability Living Allowance - Care Component
at the middle or higher rate.
provide care that is regular and substantial for at least 35 hours per
week.
not be gainfully employed or in full time education.
Where two people care for the same person only one may claim Carer’s
Allowance.
Where a carer looks after more than one disabled person, the total hours
spent providing care to each may not be added together towards the 35 hours
minimum requirement. The carer must provide care for one person for at least
35 hours per week.
Carer’s Allowance may be claimed by more than one person in a household,
i.e. by each member of a couple who care for each other.
To request a claim form, please contact the Carer's Allowance Unit. Their
address is:
Carer's Allowance Unit
Palatine House
Lancaster Road
Preston
PR1 1HB
Telephone: 01253 856 123
Text phone: 01772 562 202
You can contact these numbers between 8.30 am and 5.00 pm Monday to
Thursday, and between 8.30 am and 4.30 pm on Fridays.
Fax: 01772 899 354
Email: cau.customer-services@dwp.gsi.gov.uk
If you need the form in Braille, large print or on audio tape, then this can be
arranged for you.
If your first language is not English, please ask for information about the
interpreter service.
The Direct.Gov.UK website also contains information regarding Carers
Allowance. For your convenience, a link to this site is provided below:
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CaringForSomeone/MoneyMatters/DG_10012522