Council Tax Reduction in Scotland: 2021-2022
Council Tax Reduction (CTR) awarded by age, household structure, income sources and employment status, deprivation index, and Council Tax band in the financial year from April 2021 to March 2022. It makes references to the previously published March 2021 for comparative purposes.
2. Number of CTR Recipients
CTR data is reported monthly and this section presents analysis of CTR recipient numbers in 2021-22. The number of CTR recipients for each month from March 2021 to March 2022 is shown in Chart 2. The total number of CTR recipients in Scotland decreased from 496,580 recipients in March 2021 to 462,670 in March 2022, a decrease of 7 per cent during this period. However, the largest decrease in CTR recipients was observed in January 2022, with a low of 462,640 CTR recipients in February 2022, the lowest level ever recorded since the scheme started in April 2013.
The CTR recipients in Scotland decreased gradually between March 2021 and March 2022 in contrast to the rise in CTR recipients in Scotland observed in 2020-21 with the initial impacts of Covid-19. The largest decrease was recorded in January 2022 as shown in chart 3, when the total number of CTR recipients in Scotland decreased from December 2021 by 1.7 per cent (7,980 CTR recipients). Between June 2021 and February 2022, there were 9 consecutive monthly decreases with most of the decreases less than 0.8 per cent compared to the previous month.
Since March 2021 the total number of CTR recipients has decreased gradually month on month, but the changes have all been small, relative to the size of the total number of CTR recipients. This suggests a downward trend after the increases observed at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. This is likely driven by economic and employment conditions recovering after the pandemic. There were only 2 months of the financial year with minor increases (observed in May 2021 and March 2022).
Table 2 (next page) shows most local authorities recorded a decrease in CTR recipients between March 2021 and March 2022 (31 out of 32 local authorities), with the largest percentage decrease seen in Aberdeen City (-13.0 per cent) followed by Renfrewshire (-10.8 per cent) and Scottish Borders (-10.7 per cent) over this period. Only East Renfrewshire (1.1 per cent) recorded an increase during this period. Due to differences in the number of chargeable dwellings and characteristics of local authorities, there have been fluctuations and different volumes of CTR recipient movements across local authorities during the financial year which can be seen in chart 4.
Details of CTR recipients and income forgone since the inception of CTR are available in the Recipients and Income Forgone tables published monthly.
| Mar-21 | Apr-21 | May-21 | Jun-21 | Jul-21 | Aug-21 | Sep-21 | Oct-21 | Nov-21 | Dec-21 | Jan-22 | Feb-22 | Mar-22 | % Change (Mar 21-Mar 22) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 496,580 | 493,320 | 493,510 | 490,930 | 487,390 | 485,560 | 482,060 | 479,300 | 477,980 | 474,190 | 466,210 | 462,640 | 462,670 | -6.8% |
| Aberdeen City | 15,950 | 15,800 | 15,630 | 15,490 | 15,210 | 15,100 | 14,930 | 14,740 | 14,710 | 14,560 | 14,250 | 14,050 | 13,880 | -13.0% |
| Aberdeenshire | 13,020 | 12,850 | 12,860 | 12,800 | 12,560 | 12,460 | 12,370 | 12,350 | 12,260 | 12,540 | 12,080 | 11,760 | 11,750 | -9.8% |
| Angus | 8,790 | 8,830 | 8,750 | 8,750 | 8,650 | 8,580 | 8,520 | 8,510 | 8,460 | 8,370 | 8,240 | 8,180 | 8,140 | -7.4% |
| Argyll and Bute | 7,050 | 7,030 | 7,000 | 6,950 | 6,830 | 6,810 | 6,760 | 6,710 | 6,660 | 6,620 | 6,550 | 6,490 | 6,590 | -6.5% |
| City of Edinburgh | 35,750 | 35,520 | 35,350 | 35,080 | 34,680 | 34,720 | 34,720 | 34,500 | 34,100 | 33,500 | 32,730 | 32,620 | 32,200 | -9.9% |
| Clackmannanshire | 5,420 | 5,410 | 5,380 | 5,370 | 5,350 | 5,300 | 5,260 | 5,230 | 5,210 | 5,220 | 5,110 | 5,090 | 5,090 | -6.1% |
| Dumfries and Galloway | 13,830 | 13,750 | 13,670 | 13,580 | 13,390 | 13,220 | 13,310 | 13,220 | 13,230 | 13,070 | 12,770 | 12,740 | 12,660 | -8.5% |
| Dundee City | 17,960 | 17,980 | 17,840 | 17,960 | 18,110 | 18,160 | 18,110 | 18,060 | 18,060 | 17,730 | 17,320 | 17,250 | 17,320 | -3.6% |
| East Ayrshire | 13,590 | 13,550 | 13,510 | 13,520 | 13,450 | 13,420 | 13,300 | 13,170 | 13,240 | 13,170 | 13,030 | 12,850 | 12,900 | -5.1% |
| East Dunbartonshire | 5,740 | 5,720 | 5,670 | 5,680 | 5,590 | 5,600 | 5,530 | 5,530 | 5,560 | 5,490 | 5,410 | 5,350 | 5,390 | -6.1% |
| East Lothian | 7,030 | 7,030 | 7,040 | 6,980 | 6,980 | 6,990 | 6,980 | 6,990 | 6,970 | 6,920 | 6,870 | 6,830 | 6,620 | -5.8% |
| East Renfrewshire | 4,670 | 4,700 | 4,670 | 4,850 | 4,810 | 4,840 | 5,050 | 4,970 | 5,040 | 4,980 | 4,820 | 4,720 | 4,720 | 1.1% |
| Falkirk | 13,200 | 13,230 | 13,250 | 13,110 | 13,050 | 13,030 | 12,950 | 12,900 | 12,820 | 12,720 | 12,560 | 12,510 | 12,560 | -4.8% |
| Fife | 31,850 | 31,910 | 32,000 | 31,810 | 31,740 | 31,620 | 31,280 | 30,950 | 30,740 | 30,520 | 29,990 | 29,840 | 29,780 | -6.5% |
| Glasgow City | 91,220 | 90,350 | 91,450 | 91,170 | 90,520 | 90,820 | 89,420 | 88,930 | 89,380 | 88,600 | 86,740 | 86,010 | 85,980 | -5.7% |
| Highland | 17,790 | 17,820 | 17,760 | 17,630 | 17,300 | 17,180 | 17,000 | 16,850 | 16,780 | 16,580 | 16,490 | 16,400 | 16,260 | -8.6% |
| Inverclyde | 9,580 | 9,550 | 9,500 | 9,410 | 9,410 | 9,410 | 9,320 | 9,360 | 9,360 | 9,330 | 9,200 | 9,090 | 9,070 | -5.3% |
| Midlothian | 6,150 | 6,190 | 6,170 | 6,130 | 6,110 | 6,070 | 5,980 | 5,960 | 5,940 | 5,930 | 5,890 | 5,850 | 5,840 | -5.0% |
| Moray | 5,780 | 5,780 | 5,740 | 5,710 | 5,670 | 5,640 | 5,600 | 5,560 | 5,490 | 5,450 | 5,380 | 5,350 | 5,370 | -7.1% |
| Na h-Eileanan Siar | 2,110 | 2,100 | 2,090 | 2,070 | 2,030 | 2,020 | 2,010 | 1,990 | 1,970 | 1,960 | 1,950 | 1,930 | 1,950 | -7.6% |
| North Ayrshire | 18,430 | 17,190 | 17,810 | 17,000 | 17,370 | 16,730 | 16,700 | 16,610 | 16,610 | 16,600 | 16,530 | 16,400 | 16,830 | -8.7% |
| North Lanarkshire | 37,260 | 37,220 | 37,020 | 36,840 | 36,510 | 36,450 | 36,190 | 36,100 | 35,870 | 35,550 | 35,110 | 34,550 | 34,830 | -6.5% |
| Orkney Islands | 1,410 | 1,380 | 1,390 | 1,390 | 1,330 | 1,310 | 1,360 | 1,330 | 1,340 | 1,270 | 1,220 | 1,210 | 1,290 | -8.5% |
| Perth and Kinross | 9,130 | 9,160 | 9,120 | 9,110 | 9,010 | 8,920 | 8,920 | 8,840 | 8,740 | 8,760 | 8,610 | 8,580 | 8,580 | -6.0% |
| Renfrewshire | 19,100 | 18,930 | 18,730 | 18,670 | 18,470 | 18,370 | 18,230 | 18,160 | 18,110 | 17,950 | 17,520 | 17,320 | 17,040 | -10.8% |
| Scottish Borders | 8,730 | 8,610 | 8,600 | 8,530 | 8,470 | 8,420 | 8,290 | 8,200 | 8,160 | 8,110 | 8,120 | 7,970 | 7,800 | -10.7% |
| Shetland Islands | 1,190 | 1,160 | 1,150 | 1,160 | 1,140 | 1,130 | 1,110 | 1,110 | 1,110 | 1,110 | 1,080 | 1,060 | 1,100 | -7.6% |
| South Ayrshire | 10,600 | 10,620 | 10,570 | 10,540 | 10,470 | 10,420 | 10,380 | 10,370 | 10,320 | 10,210 | 10,060 | 10,110 | 10,060 | -5.1% |
| South Lanarkshire | 32,300 | 32,200 | 32,020 | 31,830 | 31,750 | 31,530 | 31,350 | 31,140 | 30,940 | 30,720 | 30,290 | 30,420 | 30,890 | -4.4% |
| Stirling | 5,590 | 5,600 | 5,610 | 5,560 | 5,480 | 5,470 | 5,490 | 5,500 | 5,470 | 5,440 | 5,390 | 5,370 | 5,300 | -5.2% |
| West Dunbartonshire | 11,190 | 11,100 | 11,170 | 11,280 | 11,230 | 11,180 | 11,130 | 11,090 | 11,080 | 11,090 | 10,980 | 10,890 | 10,930 | -2.3% |
| West Lothian | 15,160 | 15,060 | 15,000 | 14,990 | 14,750 | 14,660 | 14,520 | 14,380 | 14,280 | 14,150 | 13,940 | 13,870 | 13,970 | -7.8% |
Chart 5 shows the number of CTR recipients by local authority as a proportion of the Scottish CTR population for March 2022 in descending order. It can be seen that Glasgow City accounted for the highest proportion, with almost one-fifth of all CTR recipients in Scotland which is more than twice the number of CTR recipients in North Lanarkshire (the next highest ranking authority).
The five local authorities with the highest numbers of CTR recipients accounted for almost half (46 per cent) of the total number of CTR recipients for Scotland in March 2022, similar to March 2021. Their ordering has not changed either. This can be attributed to the size of the local authorities where those with larger populations may be expected to have a higher number of CTR claimants and therefore recipients. These five local authorities are:
- Glasgow City accounting for 19 per cent (85,980 CTR recipients);
- North Lanarkshire accounting for 8 per cent (34,830 CTR recipients);
- City of Edinburgh accounting for 7 per cent (32,200 CTR recipients);
- South Lanarkshire accounting for 7 per cent (30,890 CTR recipients); and
- Fife accounting for 6 per cent (29,780 CTR recipients).
In contrast, the three island authorities accounted for just 1 per cent when combined together, with only 0.4 per cent in Na h-Eileanan Siar (1,950 CTR recipients), 0.3 per cent in Orkney Islands (1,290 CTR recipients) and with the Shetland Islands accounting for 0.2 per cent, the least (1,100 CTR recipients). Similarly, the order and proportion of these island authorities were the same in March 2021.
Chart 5: CTR recipients by local authority as a proportion of the Scottish CTR Population, March 2022
2.1 CTR recipients over time
From the introduction of the CTR scheme in April 2013 to March 2022, the number of households receiving CTR in Scotland has gradually decreased from 552,380 in April 2013 to 462,670 in March 2022. However there were large rises in caseload in 2020 due to the initial economic impact of Covid-19 (as shown in Chart 1 on page 1). During 2021-22, the number of CTR recipients decreased gradually and is now 16 per cent (89,710 recipients) lower in March 2022 than when the scheme began.
All local authorities in Scotland have seen a decrease in the number of CTR recipients since the scheme was introduced in April 2013. Chart 6 shows the percentage change between April 2013 and March 2022 for all local authorities in Scotland.
The largest percentage decreases in the number of CTR recipients were in Na h-Eileanan Siar (-32 per cent), Midlothian (-24 per cent) followed by West Dunbartonshire (-24 per cent). Whilst Na h-Eileanan Siar has a large percentage decrease, this represents a relatively small number of CTR recipients. The three local authorities that recorded an increase between April 2013 and March 2021 have now also recorded decreases in CTR recipient numbers since the beginning of the CTR scheme and March 2022. These local authorities are Orkney Islands (-4 per cent), Aberdeenshire (-5 per cent) and Aberdeen City (-8 per cent) and as shown in chart 6.
2.2 CTR recipients by passported status
In March 2022, passported CTR recipients accounted for 44 per cent of all CTR recipients. This is down from 46 per cent in March 2021, and part of a decreasing trend from 63 per cent in March 2018. UC does not passport claimants to 100 per cent CTR so as the number of people on UC rises, the number of non-passported cases is expected to increase. As seen from chart 7, the most common passporting benefits are Employment and Support Allowance (Income related) and Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit) which made up 40 per cent of all CTR recipients in March 2022, similar to March 2021. The majority (86 per cent) of non-passported CTR recipients in March 2022 were not in employment, down slightly from 87 per cent in March 2021 but higher than in March 2020 (83 per cent). The proportion of passporting CTR recipients from Income Support and Jobseekers Allowance has continued to decrease and in March 2022 made up only 4 per cent of all CTR recipients.
With the general increase in UC claimants during the pandemic, there has been a change in the balance of passported and non-passported CTR recipients, with non-passported CTR recipients continuing to account for more than passported CTR recipients. This is most likely accelerated by an increased number of UC claimants as a result of the initial economic impact of Covid-19. As can be seen in chart 8, there has been a gradual decrease of passported CTR recipients (-10 per cent) and non-passported CTR recipients (-5 per cent) between March 2021 and March 2022. This is in contrast to an increase of 20 per cent observed for non-passported CTR recipients between March 2020 and March 2021. In March 2022, passported and non-passported CTR recipients accounted for 44 per cent and 56 per cent of all CTR recipients respectively.
As can be seen in chart 9, the proportion of each passported benefit as a percentage of all CTR recipients between March 2021 and March 2022 has remained similar. For non-passported CTR recipients, there has been a slight increase in the proportion of those employed and those unemployed as a percentage of all CTR recipients with the latter now accounting for 48 per cent of all CTR recipients in March 2022 (up from 47 per cent in March 2021 and up from 39 per cent in March 2020).
The number of CTR recipients by passported status and local authority in March 2022 is available in the supplementary tables. Some key variations across local authorities are:
- Na h-Eileanan Siar and Glasgow City still had the highest proportion of passported CTR recipients (57 per cent and 51 per cent respectively) similar to March 2021.
- East Lothian still had the lowest proportion of passported CTR recipients at 36 per cent in March 2022 compared to 37 per cent in March 2021. East Lothian was also the first local authority in Scotland to have UC rolled out. A similar proportion applies in Clackmannanshire (37 per cent), Aberdeenshire (38 per cent) and Highland (40 per cent) – with the latter also subject to an early roll out of UC.
2.3 CTR recipients by age and family type
Chart 10 shows the number of CTR recipients by age group in March 2022. Between March 2021 and March 2022, the number of CTR recipients decreased for all age groups. Those aged under 25 decreased the most (-19 per cent) between March 2021 and March 2022.
The age group with the highest proportion of CTR recipients continues to be those aged 65 and over, at 36 per cent (165,820 CTR recipients) in March 2022, a small rise from 34 per cent (169,540 CTR recipients) in March 2021. The March 2022 proportions of CTR recipients for all other age groups were similar to those in March 2021, with similar proportions also observed during the financial year. The age group with the lowest proportion were those aged under 25 at 3 per cent (13,170 CTR recipients). This can in part be explained by the fact there are generally less individuals aged under 25 years old with Council Tax liability and therefore applying for CTR.
Chart 11 shows the number of CTR recipients by family type in March 2022. Between March 2021 and March 2022, CTR recipients decreased for all family types, with couples having one or more child dependants decreasing the most by 18 per cent to 23,640 CTR recipients.
In March 2022, over two thirds of CTR recipients (68 per cent) were single with no child dependent, a slight rise from March 2021 (67 per cent). Lone parents continued making up 16 per cent, and 16 per cent were couples (with or without children) similar to the proportions observed in March 2021.
2.4 CTR recipients by deprivation
The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) is the Scottish Government's official tool for identifying areas of multiple deprivation. It divides Scotland into 6,976 datazones, each containing around 350 households or approximately 700-800 people. Each datazone has a calculated 'deprivation score' and these scores are then used to rank the datazones. Decile 1 contains the ten per cent most deprived datazones, Decile 2 contains the next ten per cent most deprived, and so on.
It should be noted that the overall SIMD score is a relative measure and assesses deprivation across seven domains – income, employment, education, health, access to services, crime and housing. The CTR scheme is principally concerned with income and household circumstances as a basis for making awards (see Figure 3 on page 9).
Between March 2021 and March 2022, CTR recipients decreased in all deciles with the percentage decrease greatest in the least deprived datazones (see Supplementary Table 2.9). This percentage change may be greater at the lower deprivation levels as the numbers of CTR recipients are smaller resulting in larger percentage decreases. Decile 1 decreased by 5 per cent whilst decile 10 decreased by 13 per cent. Chart 12 shows the spread of CTR recipients across areas of deprivation, using SIMD deciles as described above, which shows that the proportions in each decile have remained similar to proportions in March 2021 despite the decreases observed at a decile level. It can be observed that CTR recipients continue to be heavily concentrated in areas of highest deprivation, with 58 per cent of CTR recipients (265,810) in the lowest three deciles in March 2022 compared to 57 per cent in March 2021.
Further details of SIMD2020 are available at https://www.gov.scot/news/scottish-index-of-multiple-deprivation-2020/.
2.5 Full and partial CTR
Full CTR refers to CTR recipients whose Council Tax liability is reduced to zero. Partial CTR refers to CTR recipients whose Council Tax liability is reduced, but they are still liable to pay some Council Tax. Further details on these terms and how CTR is calculated are given in Section 1.1.
Between March 2021 and March 2022, the number of CTR recipients decreased for those that received both full and partial award status. Partial CTR decreased by 10 per cent and full CTR decreased by 6 per cent. The number of CTR recipients by full or partial award and passported status from March 2021 to March 2022 is available in the supplementary tables.
Chart 13 compares the number of CTR recipients in March 2021 and March 2022 by full or partial award and passported status. It can be seen that the decrease in CTR recipients is predominantly driven by the 10 per cent decrease in passported and full CTR recipients from 223,240 CTR recipients in March 2021 to 202,020 CTR recipients in March 2022.
The proportion of CTR recipients receiving full CTR who are in receipt of a passporting benefit and have no non-dependants[1] living in their household was 44 per cent in March 2022 compared to 45 per cent in March 2021. During this time, the proportion of CTR recipients receiving full CTR from a non-passporting benefit increased by 3 per cent gradually from April 2021 to 37 per cent in March 2022. Chart 14 compares the proportion of the CTR recipients by full or partial award between March 2021 and March 2020.
In March 2022, 56 per cent of CTR recipients were non-passported CTR recipients, a rise from 54 per cent in March 2021. Of this, 37 per cent of CTR recipients (169,390) were awarded full CTR and the remainder (87,420 CTR recipients) were awarded partial CTR.
Of all CTR recipients, four-fifths (80 per cent, 371,410 CTR recipients) were in receipt of full CTR in March 2022, similar to March 2021 (79 per cent).
Contact
Email: eddie.chan@gov.scot
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