Benefits information
Housing Benefit is available to eligible tenants to help with rent and Council Tax payments.
It does not cover a number of additional services, such as heating charges, water rates, home contents insurance and garage charges.
The amount you receive depends on the amount of rent charged, details of your family, any other people living with you and the household's income and savings.
Remember that any delay in claiming may result in you losing benefit – so make sure you apply quickly, and follow the instructions carefully. And you will need to continue to pay your rent whether or not you are receiving Housing Benefit.
A booklet called 'Housing Benefit' is available at your local Service Access Point.
Further details, including a benefit entitlement check facility, are available on
Wakefield Council’s website.
You might also find it helpful to read the Department for Work and Pensions’
'Social Security Benefit Rates' leaflet.
How to claim Housing Benefit
To register a claim for Housing Benefit, either:
- Online from the Wakefield Council's website
- Telephone: Call 0845 8 504 504; a benefit advisor will call you back to complete a claim over the phone
- In person: Call 0845 8 504 504 to arrange for a benefit advisor to visit you in your home.
- Complete a Housing and Council Tax Benefit application form available from your local Service Access Point
- Call in or write to the address below to request an application form.
Wakefield Council
Housing and Council Tax Benefit Service
Civic Centre
Castleford
0845 8504504
Completed forms can be handed in to your nearest local Service Access Point or the Housing and Council Tax Benefit Service reception at the Civic Centre.
A receipt will be given. Keep the receipt safe as it will help you with any queries you may have in the future.
It is important that you claim quickly as benefit is normally paid from the Monday after your claim has been registered. Any delay may result in losing
benefit entitlement.
Supporting documents can be verified and sent in once the claim is registered, so don’t delay.
WDH staff are available to assist in the completion of forms and will advise on other supporting documents which are necessary to your claim,
such as forms of identity, proof of the household income and details of savings.
You may be asked to sign a
consent form which allows WDH to ask Wakefield
Council about details of your claim which will assist in getting your claim processed.
How will my benefit be paid?
You will be given a choice about how your benefit will be paid. But WDH would prefer you to ask Wakefield Council to pay your
Housing Benefit directly into your rent account.
This will be paid to WDH every four weeks.
Wakefield Council will send you a notification of how much Housing Benefit you have been awarded.
If there is a shortfall in the benefit paid and the rent you pay, you must make up the difference to WDH.
If you have any queries about Housing Benefit or rent arrears contact your local Service Access Point.
What if my circumstances change?
If you have made a claim for Housing and Council Tax Benefit, and your circumstances change,
you must notify the Housing and Council Tax Benefit Service straight away, letting them know about the change.
A ‘change in circumstances’ would include changes in income, savings and people leaving or joining the household.
If you delay in telling the Housing and Council Tax Benefit Service about changes in circumstances, this may result in an overpayment of
Housing Benefit, which would then have to be paid back to Wakefield Council or you may lose out on additional entitlement.
If you knowingly claim benefit that you are not entitled to, you will have to repay the money – but you may also be prosecuted for fraud.