You may be able to pay some or all of your rent by claiming Housing Benefit from your local council.

We employ a Housing Benefits Advisor who can offer help with completing application forms for Housing Benefit. Our Housing Benefits Advisor can also advise you about claiming other income that you might be entitled to. Call our Customer Contact Centre on 0800 876 6060 for details.

• Or come along to one of our rent surgeries held every Tuesday evening in our offices at Crown Square, Maidenhead.

Your local council deals with Housing Benefit. You can get an application form from our offices or your local council. You must complete the form and return it to your local council. Our Housing Benefit Advisor can help you do this and can provide advice on benefits.

If you are entitled to Housing Benefit, it is your responsibility to apply for this and to supply your local council with all the information they need to consider your application. You must complete your Housing Benefit application in full giving all the information requested or you application may be delayed.

Your application must be sent in on time. Housing Benefit will only be backdated to the date your local council received your application. Any rent due before this date will have to be paid by you. If your application is refused you will have to pay your rent.

Housing Benefit can be paid straight to us or to you. Any Housing Benefit that you receive from the council must be used to pay your rent.

Important Points

• You need to get an application in immediately. It is very difficult to get Housing Benefit backdated.
• No claim means no Housing Benefit and that means you will have to pay your rent.
• The longer you wait to submit a claim the longer you will have to cover your rent yourself.
• The council requires evidence to support your application. You must supply all the evidence they ask for.
• You will have a time limit by which the evidence must be supplied. If you do not supply it in time your claim will be cancelled and you will have to re-apply.
• Every time you have any change in your circumstances you must tell the council. This could be someone leaving or joining your household. Whatever the change, it may mean you will get more or less Housing Benefit.