S8/2021(revised): Housing Benefit Award Accuracy Initiative funding for financial year ending March 2022 for LAs participating from 6 April 2021
Updated 17 June 2022
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Housing Benefit Circular
All Housing Benefit (HB) staff
Action
For information
Subject
Housing Benefit Award Accuracy Initiative funding for financial year ending March 2022 for local authorities participating from 6 April 2021.
Revisions
We apologise for any inconvenience caused but this circular is being reissued as it has been revised as follows:
-
the number of local authorities participating in the Housing Benefit Award Accuracy Initiative has been corrected in paragraph one
-
the funding payment for South Oxfordshire District Council is now included in Annex A
Guidance Manual
The information in this circular does not affect the content of the HB Guidance Manual.
Queries
If you:
- want extra copies of this circular/copies of previous circulars, they can be found on Housing Benefit for local authorities: subsidy circulars
- have any queries about the:
- technical content of this circular, contact lawelfare.lafunding@dwp.gov.uk
- actual payments, contact lawelfare.lapaymentsandsubsidy@dwp.gov.uk
- distribution of this circular, contact lawelfare.correspondence@dwp.gov.uk
Introduction
1. This circular is to confirm the funding of approximately £5.8 million allocated to the 191 local authorities (LAs) participating in the Housing Benefit Award Accuracy (HBAA) Initiative from 6 April 2021.
2. The funding is intended to support LAs undertaking activities to proactively identify unreported changes and make sure the right amount of HB is paid to the right person, at the right time.
3. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) would like to continue working with LAs to improve the accuracy of HB awards and has secured overall funding of approximately £12 million for financial year ending (FYE) March 2022 (year 2 of the Initiative).
4. LAs who have chosen one of the deferred start dates offered (either 5 July 2021 or 4 October 2021) will receive details of their funding payments nearer the time.
Funding details
5. Individual letters were sent to Revenues and Benefits managers on 19 February 2021 and 25 February 2021 providing LA funding amounts and the volume of activities needed respectively, based on a start date of 6 April 2021. An HB Adjudication circular regarding the HBAA Initiative for FYE 2022 will follow in due course.
6. This funding is for LAs to undertake:
- HB Full Case Reviews (FCRs)
- Housing Benefit Matching Service (HBMS) referrals, including
- Self-Employed Case Reviews (SER)
- the correct recording of case information on LA IT systems and clerical management information (MI) returns to DWP
7. Participating LAs are expected to review all HBMS cases they receive and their share of the 400,000 nationally identified FCRs. LAs are encouraged to contact our dedicated Performance Relationship Managers at lawelfare.pdt@dwp.gov.uk if they face any challenges.
Payment details
8. The funding payments for LAs are shown in Annex A. Payments will be issued to those LAs participating from 6 April 2021 on or around 28 April 2021.
HBAA Initiative (FYE 2022): Funding payments for LAs participating from 6 April 2021
| LA | Funding payments |
|---|---|
| Aberdeenshire Council | £13,598.62 |
| Amber Valley Borough Council | £15,022.40 |
| Angus Council | £8,718.66 |
| Arun District Council | £23,537.82 |
| Ashford Borough Council | £16,114.62 |
| Babergh District Council | £8,356.16 |
| Basildon District Council | £28,703.27 |
| Basingstoke and Deane District Council | £25,498.75 |
| Bedford Borough Council | £29,575.13 |
| Blaby District Council | £8,010.06 |
| Blackpool Borough Council | £32,790.79 |
| Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council | £7,437.95 |
| Bolsover District Council | £6,513.23 |
| Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council | £50,325.37 |
| Breckland District Council | £17,571.83 |
| Brentwood District Council | £5,265.87 |
| Broxtowe Council | £10,304.48 |
| Buckinghamshire Council | £78,177.14 |
| Burnley Borough Council | £14,567.10 |
| Bury Metropolitan Borough Council | £25,718.78 |
| Caerphilly County Borough Council | £20,785.28 |
| Cambridge City Council | £17,077.11 |
| Cannock Chase District Council | £10,954.35 |
| Canterbury City Council | £22,977.46 |
| Cardiff City Council | £73,952.06 |
| Carmarthenshire County Council | £21,459.87 |
| Castle Point District Council | £11,868.78 |
| Ceredigion Council | £10,899.08 |
| Charnwood Borough Council | £17,824.73 |
| Cheltenham Borough Council | £14,940.13 |
| Cheshire East Council | £32,583.15 |
| Chesterfield Borough Council | £14,116.18 |
| Chorley Borough Council | £11,323.57 |
| City of Edinburgh Council | £103,900.64 |
| City of Lincoln Council | £16,752.82 |
| City of London | £1,942.08 |
| Colchester Borough Council | £32,539.38 |
| Conwy County Borough Council | £17,725.90 |
| Coventry City Council | £81,662.59 |
| Crawley Borough Council | £25,517.55 |
| Darlington Borough Council | £14,418.09 |
| Dartford Borough Council | £16,230.29 |
| Derbyshire Dales District Council | £6,288.53 |
| Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council | £36,903.25 |
| Dover District Council | £16,110.75 |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council | £15,813.09 |
| Durham County Council | £82,719.66 |
| East Ayrshire Council | £8,400.15 |
| East Cambridgeshire District Council | £9,348.91 |
| East Devon District Council | £17,357.04 |
| East Dunbartonshire Council | £7,638.78 |
| East Lothian District Council | £11,740.50 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire Council | £39,754.40 |
| East Staffordshire Borough Council | £17,808.02 |
| East Suffolk Council | £26,990.23 |
| Eastbourne Borough Council | £24,187.69 |
| Eastleigh Borough Council | £11,400.11 |
| Elmbridge Borough Council | £19,233.40 |
| Epping Forest District Council | £16,451.90 |
| Erewash Borough Council | £13,535.41 |
| Fenland District Council | £13,474.62 |
| Flintshire County Council | £14,562.87 |
| Folkestone and Hythe District Council | £15,276.54 |
| Fylde Borough Council | £8,658.40 |
| Gedling Borough Council | £15,849.79 |
| Gloucester City Council | £25,526.04 |
| Gravesham Borough Council | £14,232.04 |
| Gwynedd Council | £15,410.33 |
| Halton Borough Council | £14,037.18 |
| Harrogate Borough Council | £10,780.15 |
| Hart District Council | £8,460.48 |
| Havant Borough Council | £14,353.56 |
| Herefordshire Council | £24,311.49 |
| Hertsmere Borough Council | £21,621.84 |
| Highland Council | £18,179.00 |
| Hull City Council | £62,121.11 |
| Inverclyde District Council | £9,235.36 |
| Ipswich Borough Council | £26,026.10 |
| Isle of Wight County Council | £24,520.38 |
| Kings Lynn & West Norfolk Borough Council | £18,075.63 |
| Knowsley Borough Council | £26,505.88 |
| Leicester City Council | £85,843.48 |
| Lewes District Council | £19,266.70 |
| Liverpool City Council | £119,630.84 |
| London Borough of Barking and Dagenham | £99,027.05 |
| London Borough of Croydon | £131,194.81 |
| London Borough of Ealing | £153,034.69 |
| London Borough of Enfield | £201,830.44 |
| London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham | £61,385.72 |
| London Borough of Havering | £54,855.24 |
| London Borough of Hillingdon | £86,316.52 |
| London Borough of Hounslow | £66,306.63 |
| London Borough of Islington | £78,591.55 |
| London Borough of Lambeth | £143,268.05 |
| London Borough of Lewisham | £139,385.40 |
| London Borough of Sutton | £38,839.07 |
| London Borough of Tower Hamlets | £172,510.74 |
| London Borough of Waltham Forest | £117,956.71 |
| Luton Borough Council | £75,982.63 |
| Maidstone Borough Council | £27,971.95 |
| Medway Council | £49,731.52 |
| Mendip District Council | £12,020.31 |
| Mid Devon District Council | £7,155.72 |
| Mid Suffolk District Council | £6,517.71 |
| Middlesbrough Council | £34,678.20 |
| Moray Council | £8,088.67 |
| New Forest District Council | £18,031.42 |
| Newcastle City Council | £48,093.96 |
| North Ayrshire Council | £17,038.03 |
| North Devon District Council | £13,034.13 |
| North East Lincolnshire Council | £22,900.20 |
| North Hertfordshire District Council | £17,135.64 |
| North Kesteven District Council | £8,381.28 |
| North Lanarkshire Council | £37,653.43 |
| North Lincolnshire Council | £16,895.89 |
| North Somerset Council | £23,745.01 |
| North Tyneside Borough Council | £22,026.64 |
| North Warwickshire District Council | £6,303.83 |
| Norwich City Council | £26,151.59 |
| Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council | £16,997.20 |
| Oldham Borough Council | £42,987.14 |
| Orkney Islands Council | £1,908.69 |
| Pendle Borough Council | £12,572.54 |
| Perth and Kinross Council | £8,384.41 |
| Peterborough City Council | £39,536.58 |
| Reading Borough Council | £39,012.27 |
| Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council | £22,169.42 |
| Reigate and Banstead Borough Council | £19,952.68 |
| Rhonda-Cynon-Taff County Borough Council | £26,442.37 |
| Ribble Valley Borough Council | £3,487.90 |
| Rochdale Borough Council | £37,231.05 |
| Rossendale Borough Council | £6,968.73 |
| Rotherham Borough Council | £34,118.41 |
| Royal Borough of Greenwich | £103,219.63 |
| Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea | £69,565.99 |
| Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames | £37,590.56 |
| Runnymede Borough Council | £10,794.90 |
| Rushcliffe Borough Council | £9,066.83 |
| Ryedale District Council | £4,032.51 |
| Salford City Council | £62,684.86 |
| Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council | £46,449.79 |
| Scarborough Borough Council | £16,473.31 |
| Scottish Borders Council | £11,272.92 |
| Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council | £33,855.16 |
| Sevenoaks District Council | £14,485.66 |
| Shropshire Council | £27,891.02 |
| Slough Borough Council | £57,245.45 |
| Somerset West and Taunton Council | £20,033.60 |
| South Cambridgeshire District Council | £12,897.42 |
| South Hams District Council | £11,934.90 |
| South Kesteven District Council | £12,829.75 |
| South Lakeland District Council | £9,284.44 |
| South Lanarkshire Council | £29,616.10 |
| South Oxfordshire District Council | £13,002.80 |
| South Staffordshire District Council | £8,187.20 |
| South Tyneside Council | £28,165.15 |
| Stafford Borough Council | £11,884.50 |
| Stockport Borough Council | £32,120.95 |
| Stratford-On-Avon District Council | £11,713.00 |
| Surrey Heath Borough Council | £8,391.74 |
| Swale Borough Council | £24,333.14 |
| Swansea City Council | £25,180.46 |
| Swindon Borough Council | £22,383.71 |
| Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council | £35,224.49 |
| Tamworth Borough Council | £7,322.00 |
| Telford and Wrekin Council | £38,368.72 |
| Test Valley Borough Council | £17,376.05 |
| Tewkesbury Borough Council | £8,563.51 |
| Thanet District Council | £25,424.80 |
| Three Rivers Council | £11,369.90 |
| Thurrock Borough Council | £24,235.28 |
| Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council | £29,065.62 |
| Tunbridge Wells Borough Council | £17,380.33 |
| Vale of White Horse District Council | £14,656.51 |
| Walsall Borough Council | £58,556.81 |
| Warrington Borough Council | £23,283.24 |
| Warwick District Council | £15,024.87 |
| Watford Borough Council | £27,070.40 |
| Waverley Borough Council | £13,138.60 |
| Wealden District Council | £16,000.96 |
| West Berkshire Council | £16,355.07 |
| West Devon Borough Council | £7,341.46 |
| West Dunbartonshire Council | £18,551.82 |
| West Lothian Council | £24,677.52 |
| West Suffolk Council | £24,888.16 |
| Wiltshire Council | £45,595.80 |
| Winchester City Council | £10,936.87 |
| Wirral Borough Council | £53,855.13 |
| Wrexham Council | £14,982.38 |
| Wyre Borough Council | £13,703.98 |
| Wyre Forest District Council | £17,149.69 |
Crown Copyright 2021
Recipients may freely reproduce this circular.