Care Leaver Social Work Verification for Council Tax in Scotland

Why Verification Is Required

Under SSI 2018/39, care leavers aged 18 to 25 are statutory disregarded persons for council tax across all 32 Scottish local authorities. If you were looked after by a local authority on or after your 16th birthday — whether in foster care, residential care, or a kinship placement — and are no longer looked after, you may qualify. But councils won't just take your word for it. They usually ask for formal written verification from the social work department that cared for you.

This verification typically takes the form of a signed letter or a stamped section on the council tax application form, confirming:

• Your name and date of birth
• That you were looked after on or after your 16th birthday
• The name of the local authority that provided care
• The dates you were in care

Councils usually ask for confirmation from the originating authority's social work or aftercare team. If you cannot get that letter, ask the billing council what alternative evidence it will accept; a Who Cares? Scotland advocate letter or formal leaving-care grant award letter may support your claim.

The Cross-Boundary Problem

This is where care leavers hit a wall. If you were in care under one local authority — say, North Lanarkshire — but now live in Glasgow, you need North Lanarkshire's social work team to provide the verification. Glasgow's social work department can't verify what happened under a different council's care.

Getting cross-boundary verification can be slow. Your former social worker may have moved on, your file may have been archived, and the duty team at your old local authority may not prioritise council tax verification letters. Some councils have dedicated throughcare and aftercare teams that handle these requests quickly. Others don't.

Steps to speed up a cross-boundary verification:

1. Contact the throughcare/aftercare team at the local authority that looked after you — not the general social work number. Ask specifically for a council tax verification letter.
2. Give them the billing council's form if one exists — Glasgow, for example, has a dedicated care leaver exemption form with a section for the verifying authority to stamp and sign. Getting the right form to the right team removes guesswork.
3. Set a deadline — ask how long the verification will take and follow up if it doesn't arrive. Two weeks is reasonable; longer than four weeks justifies escalation.
4. Ask your billing council whether it can pause recovery action or note your account while verification is being processed. Do not assume recovery action will be paused while evidence is pending.

How Who Cares? Scotland Can Help

Who Cares? Scotland is an independent advocacy organisation for care-experienced people. They can help you navigate council tax exemption claims, including chasing cross-boundary social work verifications. Their advocates know which local authority contacts handle these requests and can intervene if a social work team is unresponsive.

If you're struggling to get verification — particularly if your former local authority is slow or unhelpful — Who Cares? Scotland's helpline and local advocates are a direct route to getting things moving. The service is free and confidential.

What Happens at 26

The care leaver disregard continues through the day before your 26th birthday and ends when you turn 26. From your 26th birthday, you count as a regular adult resident for council tax purposes. If you live alone, you may qualify for the 25% single person discount instead — but you'll need to apply for it separately, because the discount doesn't kick in automatically when the care leaver disregard expires.

If your 26th birthday falls mid-year, your council should adjust your bill from that date. Check your next demand notice to make sure the change is reflected correctly.

The Council Tax Discounts and Exemptions in Scotland guide covers every step of the care leaver verification process, including what to do if verification is refused or delayed.

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