2. Customer Services Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit

3. Housing Benefit – help with paying rent Salix & City West Tenants have housing benefit credited direct to rent account each week Other private tenants paid by cheque/BACS either direct to tenant or direct to landlord 7300 Salix HB claimants 19600 other private HB claimants (including City West tenants) 26900 total HB claimants Total HB paid in 2008/9 = £87.5m

4. Council Tax Benefit – help paying council tax bill Council Tax Benefit credited to council tax account in advance to 31 st March of following year 30,900 Council Tax Benefit Claimants 5900 home owners 25,000 tenants who also pay rent Total Council Tax Benefit paid in 2008/9 = £26m

5. Financial Costs to Salford City Council In 2008/9 we paid out £113.5m in HB/CTB Most cases we are reimbursed 100% by Government Penalty areas – overpayments; Claimant Error/Fraud = £1.7m (40% subsidy) LA Error/delay = £200k (Nil subsidy)

6. Performance Measures Current average processing time for NEW CLAIMS = 26 days Current average processing time for CHANGES IN CIRCUMSTANCES = 12 days Combined New Claims & Changes = 17.48 days

7. Internal and External Services Customer Services is divided into two functions, back office processing (internal services) and frontline services (external services) Internal Services – assessing and inputting benefit claims, appeals, overpayments of HB/CTB, fraud investigations, council tax and business rates collection External Services – call handling and counter enquiries. Daily face to face service at Gateway Centres

8. Benefit Take Up Minority/hard to reach groups Homeowners Pensioners Working families Defective Claims New Initiatives; Child Benefit disregard from 2nd November 2009 Pensioner Capital limit from 2nd November 2009

9. Any Questions?