Council Tax Campaign

The Campaign For A Fairer Council Tax

How Does Council Tax Work ?

The council tax system works in the following way:

All homes are allocated to one of eight bands, according to their value. Lowest value properties are placed in Band A and highest value properties in Band H. For existing properties this allocation took place in the early 1990s and was based on the value of homes in 1991. The table below shows the 1991 value of properties in each band for England (Scottish and Welsh bands are different - see below).

Each year local authorities set the level of council tax for their area, by determining the charge payable by households in Band D. In 2001/02 the average English council's Band D council tax is £901.

The council tax for households in each of the other bands is a fixed proportion of the Band D council tax for the local authority. The proportion is determined by multipliers (i.e. values by which Band D council tax is multiplied to arrive at the council tax for the other bands). These were set down in a 1992 act, and can be changed by secondary legislation. At present the top band's council tax is only three times the value of the bottom band's. The table above shows the multipliers for all bands.

Households with only one adult, and households where a person has a disability are eligible for discounts on their council tax. Student households pay no tax at all. Households with low incomes can claim council tax benefit, which covers some or all the cost of council tax.

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