County Durham Council Tax Reduction Income Bands 2026/27
The Five Income Bands for 2026/27
Durham County Council replaced its old means-tested Council Tax Reduction scheme with an income-banded model on 1 April 2026. Instead of recalculating your discount every time your pay changes by a few pounds, the council now slots your household into one of five fixed bands based on your net weekly income.
Here are the bands for the 2026/27 financial year:
| Band | Net Weekly Household Income | Discount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | £0.00 – £69.99 | 90% |
| 2 | £70.00 – £125.00 | 75% |
| 3 | £125.01 – £200.00 | 50% |
| 4 | £200.01 – £275.00 | 25% |
| 5 | £275.01 or more | 0% (no award) |
The practical effect: small pay fluctuations no longer trigger a revised bill every month. Under the old system, Durham was issuing over 250,000 revised demand notices a year because minor Universal Credit earnings changes kept moving people in and out of entitlement. The banded structure absorbs those fluctuations.
How the Council Calculates Your Net Weekly Income
Not everything you earn counts. Durham's scheme applies several disregards before placing you in a band:
- All DWP benefits are fully disregarded — Universal Credit, PIP, DLA, ESA, Attendance Allowance, and Carer's Allowance do not count toward your assessable income
- £25 weekly earnings disregard — the first £25 per week of combined net earned income (yours and your partner's) is ignored
- Childcare costs — up to £175 per week for one child or £300 per week for two or more children is deducted from net earnings
- Fostering, adoption, and child maintenance — fully disregarded
- War pensions and Armed Forces compensation — fully disregarded
So if you earn £180 per week net and receive Universal Credit, the council ignores the UC entirely, subtracts the £25 earnings disregard, and assesses you at £155 per week — putting you in Band 3 (50% discount).
The Capital Limit
Savings and capital follow their own rules:
- Under £6,000 — fully ignored
- £6,000 to £9,999 — tariff income of £1 per week for every £250 (or part of £250) above £6,000 is added to your weekly income
- £10,000 or more — you're disqualified from CTR entirely
This is stricter than the Universal Credit capital limit of £16,000, which catches out some claimants who qualify for UC but not for Durham's CTR.
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What the Bands Mean in Practice
For a household in a Band A property paying roughly £25 per week in Council Tax:
- Band 1 (90% discount) — you pay about £2.50 per week
- Band 2 (75% discount) — you pay about £6.25 per week
- Band 3 (50% discount) — you pay about £12.50 per week
- Band 4 (25% discount) — you pay about £18.75 per week
One exception: households where a member has a terminal illness (confirmed by an SR1 medical form) receive a 100% discount for up to 12 months, removing the 10% minimum payment entirely.
Why It Matters to Know Your Band
Understanding which band you fall into — and which disregards apply to your income — is the difference between paying the right amount and overpaying. If the council has assessed you incorrectly, you can request a written breakdown of the calculation and challenge it through a formal reconsideration.
The County Durham Council Tax Reduction guide includes a printable income calculation worksheet mapped to the 2026/27 bands, so you can work through the arithmetic yourself before the council's decision arrives.
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