ALMOST 9,000 households on benefits in the new Dorset Council area could be affected by changes in their way council tax will be administered from April.

The new Dorset Council is proposing a single scheme across the whole area to deal with low income households on some form of benefit who need help to pay their council tax.

At the moment 25,000 households across the area claim – with an average award of £985, while for pensioner households the average claimed is £1,076.

A report into three options says that if the new scheme being proposed was adopted, limiting the maximum which can be claimed for those classed as claimants which are 'unprotected of working age' to 90 per cent, up to 8,660 households could be up to £12 per year worse off. The other option, which is not being supported, would have pushed this up to over £50 a year.

A public consultation held last year into the options for changes to the Local Council Tax Support (LCTS) scheme in the new Dorset Council area saw only 382 responses with less than half in favour of any option, but a majority saying that whatever scheme was adopted it should be the same throughout the area.

The council say that those on Universal Credit will have their LCTS entitlement calculated on an estimated average over a six-month period. Claimants will be able to request a review if their circumstances change significantly.

A final decision on the proposals, which will be discussed at the shadow overview and scrutiny committee on January 8, will be made by the shadow executive committee at its meeting in February when the budget for the year ahead is expected to be finalised.

If agreed at that meeting the changes will apply to those people living in the current area covered by East Dorset District Council, North Dorset District Council, Purbeck District Council, West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council.

Those claimants who are classed as protected would not see any changes. These include those receiving Disability Living Allowance, Disability Living Allowance (Mobility), Personal Independence Payment, Carers Allowance or the Employment Support Allowance Component. It will also not affect those in receipt of War Disablement Pension, War Widows Pension or War Widows Disablement Pension.