Childcare costs affecting your Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction claim

If you pay for childcare we may be able to disregard these costs from your earnings when we calculate your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction. This could mean that your benefit increases.

Your child must be under 15 (or 16 if your child is disabled). We will need proof of the childcare payments you make and the childminder's registration number.

How much can be disregarded

If you pay for childcare for one child, we can disregard up to £175 of your weekly earnings. This amount may increase to £300 a week if you pay for childcare for two or more children. This does not mean that you would get £175 or £300 a week extra benefit. We would simply ignore this amount from your weekly income when we work out your benefit.

Qualifying childcare costs

The care must be provided by:

• a registered childminder
• a registered nursery or play scheme
• a local authority or school out of school hours on school premises (for children aged 8 or over)
• a child care scheme on Crown property where registration is not needed or child care approved for Tax Credit purposes
• a foster parent/kinship carer (so long as they are not the foster parent/kinship carer of the child in question) under the Fostering Services Regulations 2002
• a domiciliary care worker under the Domiciliary Care Agencies Regulations 2002
• anyone else who is not a relative of the child, where the care is provided mainly in the child's home

Childcare costs if you are a single parent

We may be able to disregard your childcare costs if you are a single parent in paid work for 16 hours a week or more

Childcare costs if you have a partner

We may be able to disregard your childcare costs if you are a member of a couple and either:

• both are in paid work for 16 hours a week or more each or treated as being in 'paid work'
• one is in paid work for 16 hours or more and the other is 'incapacitated', in hospital or in prison (Incapacitated means being ill, registered blind or getting certain benefits).

Paid work can also apply to people receiving statutory maternity, paternity or adoption pay and maternity allowance, and people absent from work through illness for up to 28 weeks and receiving benefits.

How to claim

You should tell us about your childcare costs on your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Reduction claim form

If you haven't done that and think you may qualify, you should contact us as soon as possible.