What is a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) and am I entitled to claim?

🛏️ Bedroom Tax – What It Means

If you have a bedroom you don’t need, your Housing Benefit or Universal Credit might go down.
This is called the bedroom tax.

📉 How much does it go down?

  • 1 spare room = 14% less
  • 2 or more spare rooms = 25% less

🧮 How to work it out

Here’s a quick way to check:

  1. Divide your weekly rent by 100
  2. Multiply that number by 14 or 25 (depending on how many spare rooms you have)

Example:

If your rent is £120 a week:

  • 1 spare room:
    £120 ÷ 100 = 1.2 → 1.2 × 14 = £16.80 less per week
  • 2 spare rooms:
    1.2 × 25 = £30 less per week

💡 Need help paying?

You can ask for extra help called a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP).
This is short-term help to give you time to sort things out.

👉 Apply for a DHP from Tendring District Council

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