Council signs up to Citizens Advice Council Tax Protocol

The Citizens Advice Council Tax Protocol is a good practice guide to collecting Council Tax and promotes close working between councils, debt advice organisations and enforcement agencies.

By signing the protocol, the Council and partners have reinforced their commitment to the principles of fairness, partnership working and transparency in local authority debt collection, and to early-stage intervention to support those who have fallen into arrears.

Councillor Jilly Julian, Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources at Stockport Council, said: "We are always looking for ways to help and support our residents who are finding it difficult to pay their Council Tax - signing up to the Citizens Advice Council Tax Protocol is another step in cementing and demonstrating our good practice in this area.

"There are lots of reasons why people may struggle to pay their Council Tax bills - this protocol is all about how we work with people to support them so that they can pay their bills without getting into further financial difficulties.

"The Citizens Advice Council Tax Protocol marks a clear commitment from the Council to continue to work with our partners to keep improving support to our residents who might be struggling with Council Tax payments."

Councillor Mark Hunter, Leader of Stockport Council: "I am pleased that the council has signed the protocol, showing our ongoing commitment to approaching debt recovery in a consistent, fair and open way.

"We are committed to working closely with our partners and will continue to regularly review our procedures to see if any improvements can be made.

"It is especially important we talk to people who are struggling with payments at an early stage. We only ever take enforcement action as a very last resort and always encourage residents to make contact with us if they are facing financial difficulties in paying bills raised by the Council so we can offer appropriate advice and practical help.

"We know dealing with financial matters can be a very difficult time for many, and the Council - along with our enforcement agency Jacobs - make every effort in all of our recovery correspondence to make residents aware of the support available to them."

Jonathan Yates, Chief Executive Officer of Citizens Advice Stockport, said: "We're delighted that Stockport Council has joined the Citizens Advice Council Tax Protocol. This demonstrates their commitment to fairness and transparency in managing council tax. We want to thank the Council for their support in assisting residents with their finances. This collaboration reflects our shared goal of promoting community well-being and ensuring everyone is treated fairly."

Paul Kelly, from Jacobs the Council’s enforcement agency, added: "On behalf of Jacobs, I am pleased to sign up to and adopt the Council Tax Protocol with Stockport Council and Citizens Advice Stockport to jointly demonstrate our public commitment to its principles of partnership working, transparency and fairness in local authority debt collection."

If residents are struggling or are unable to pay their Council Tax , please call 0161 217 6014 or email council.tax@stockport.gov.uk.

For more details on Council Tax in Stockport go to Council Tax - Stockport Council and to read the Protocol in full go to the Citizens Advice website.