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Benefits Service

How do I claim a benefit?

Making a claim

To claim either Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support you will need to complete a claim form.

These easiest way to get a form is to Download a Council Tax Support / Housing Benefit Claim Form direct from this website.

You can also collect a form from the council's Civic Offices in New Road, Grays or from any Local Area Office.

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What proof do I have to give to support my claim?

The claim form has all the details of what proof you have to give, but here is a short list:

• Proof of identity
• Proof of National Insurance Number
• Proof of capital and savings
• Proof of earnings
• Proof of bank and building society accounts held
• Proof of all benefits, allowances or pensions
• Proof of other income
• Proof of other money paid out
• Proof of rent and tenancy (if you do not rent from the council)
• Proof of income for other adults in the property

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What can I send as proof in each case?

The following list shows examples of types of proof you can give:

• Proof of identity - at least two documents are required for both the claimant and partner (if applicable) e.g. birth or marriage certificate, medical card, benefit award letter.
• Proof of National Insurance Number - one document is required for claimant and partner (if applicable) e.g. P45 certificate, benefit award letter, payslips, tax letter from Inland Revenue.
• Proof of capital and savings - proof must be provided for each adult in the household e.g. current bank statements showing at least two months' transactions, Building Society passbooks, Premium Bonds certificates, shares certificates.
• Proof of earnings - for each applicable adult in the household e.g. last five weeks, two months or three fortnightly payslips, certificate of earnings signed by employer, self employed accounts for the last two years.
• Proof of all benefits, allowances or pensions received - for each applicable adult in the household e.g. all pages of Award Notices from the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP), confirming amount and frequency, benefit award letter, HM Revenue & Customs, etc.
• Proof of other income - for each applicable adult in the household e.g. pension slips from former employers, proof of maintenance received, proof of money received from boarders or lodgers.
• Proof of other money paid out - this is required only for the claimant and partner if applicable e.g. agreements or receipts for registered childminding or nursery, letters about Student Loans or grants.
• Proof of rent and tenancy this - is only needed if you rent a property which is not a Council property e.g. rent book, tenancy agreement, letter from landlord.

In all cases you must provide original documents only. Photocopies cannot be accepted. We can copy the original for you at any Local Office or the Civic Offices, or if you send them in we will return the originals. Valuable items will be sent back by Recorded Delivery.

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Fast Tracking

If you provide the following seven items when you claim, we aim to process your benefit claim within one working day. This process is called Fast Tracking.

1. Your fully completed claim form (this means you must answer every relevant question).
2. Proof of identity for you and, if you have a partner, for them too.
3. Proof of National Insurance number for you.
4. Proof of income for you, and if you have a partner, for them too.
5. Proof of income for anyone else who lives with you, (including that of your children, or a grown up son or daughter, or other relative or friend).
6. Proof of any bank accounts, building society accounts, savings, investments, any other capital, stocks or shares held by you, your partner or your children.
7. Proof of your rent if you pay rent to a private landlord or a housing association.

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What if I don't have the proof needed right away?

If you can't provide all the proof we need with your form, complete it with as much information as you can and return it by post to the Civic Offices or in person to either the Civic Offices or a Local Office anyway. We can start to process your claim but we can't pay benefit until we receive all the necessary proof, so you must send in the rest of the information within 30 days.

If you have a problem getting the information you should let us know, as we may be able to give you longer to get it. We may ask for more information if we have any queries.

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Benefit fraud

Please remember that committing Benefit Fraud can lead to the claimant being fined or facing a prison sentence. If you believe that someone is committing benefit fraud you can report them online by completing our Benefit Fraud Incident Report Form.

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