Care leavers should be exempt from paying council tax to help give them financial stability when they leave care, local authority leaders have said.
The Local Government Association (LGA) said a council tax exemption for those leaving care is ‘one of the most direct and effective ways’ of helping care leavers avoid financial difficulty.
An estimated 83% of young people leaving care struggle to afford essentials, according to a survey by the National Leaving Care Benchmarking Forum cited by the LGA.
Many local authorities have council tax exemptions or reductions in place for care leavers, but the decision is taken by individual authorities rather than central government.
As part of the National Care Leavers Week, the LGA has called for a Government-funded exemption covering all local authority areas which it argues would stop the ‘postcode lottery’.
Chair of the LGA, Cllr Louise Gittins, urged the Government to consider a ‘more consistent offer for care leavers across the country’.
‘Providing a nationally-government funded exemption for council tax, prescriptions, NHS dental treatment and optician costs will ensure no care leaver goes without access to services they rely on to stay healthy and well.’
