Report a change in circumstance

If you receive Housing Benefit and / or Council Tax Reduction, the law states that you must tell us about any changes in circumstances involving you or your family. This is because it may affect the amount of benefit/reduction you are entitled to.

You must tell us about the change yourself. Do not rely on someone else – such as another department, another agency (the Inland Revenue, or the Department of Work and Pensions) or any other person (such as your landlord or a family member) – to let us know.

If you do not tell us about a change in your circumstances, within one month of it happening, you may lose out on benefit/reduction – or we may pay you too much benefit/reduction that you will have to pay back to us.

Form for notifying change of circumstances

Please notify us of any change in circumstances by using one the forms below:

• Change of Circumstances Notification Form (link to online form)
• Change of Circumstance Notification Form (printable version)

What are changes of circumstances?

• If you, your partner’s or any other adults
• Wage or salary goes up or down
• Start to receive a new benefit
• State benefits, such as Income Support or Jobseekers Allowance, either change or stop
• Child benefit changes or stops
• Private pension goes up or down
• Capital or savings go up or down
• Rent changes unless you are a tenant of High Peak Community Housing

If you or your partner’s children:

• Starts or leaves full time education
• Starts to be cared for, or stops being cared for, by a child minder, day nursery or playgroup

If anyone in your household, including you or your partner:

• Has a baby
• Moves address or room
• Starts works, returns to work after a period of illness or changes jobs
• Moves in or leaves your address, including children, lodgers and subtenants
• Are going to be away from home for a month or more
• Becomes a student, goes into hospital, a nursing home or to prison
• Receives a decision from the Home office concerning your Immigration status
• Has any other change to their circumstances, including their benefits

Who do we mean by partner?

• A person you are married to, or a person you live with as if you are married to them
• A civil partner, or person you live with as if you are civil partners

If you are in any doubt as to whether a change will affect your benefit/reduction, tell us anyway.