GovTech Local Authority Housing Benefits Digital Service

Compliant Benefits Claim Journey

• New Housing Benefit claim user journey (GDS service assessment compliant): (1) eligibility check (benefit calculator — am I likely to qualify?), (2) identity verification (GOV.UK One Login), (3) claim form (GDS Form — evidence-based question ordering, conditional logic, save and return), (4) document upload (supporting evidence — tenancy agreement, bank statements, payslips), (5) claim submission, (6) acknowledgement (GOV.UK Notify email with reference number), (7) decision (GOV.UK Notify — benefit awarded/declined with reason), (8) payment (automated BACS payment to landlord or claimant).
• GDS Service Standard Point 1 (user needs): user research with 12 Housing Benefit claimants before Alpha — discovered 60% abandoned legacy form at bank account section (unclear instructions).
• DWP ATLAS Integration —

HB to UC Migration

DWP ATLAS (Automated Transfer to UC and Support): Housing Benefit ends when claimant migrates to Universal Credit.

ATLAS integration

• 1DWP sends ATLAS notification (claimant has been invited to claim UC),
• 2council receives ATLAS notification (API webhook),
• 3council prepares HB end date (2-week run-on calculation — Housing Benefit continues for 2 weeks after UC awarded),
• 4ATLAS confirms UC payment date (DWP ATLAS API),
• 5HB stopped automatically on correct date.

HB to UC migration

3,400 claimants migrated to UC in 2024/25 — ATLAS automation handles all without manual processing.

Council Tax Reduction

• CTR is not migrated to UC (remains council-administered) — CTR continues after UC migration, automatically re-assessed based on UC income data (DWP data share agreement).
• GOV.

UK Design System and Accessibility

GOV.UK Design System (GOVUK Frontend React): all form components use GOV.UK Design System — consistent with other government services (reduces cognitive load for claimants who use multiple government services).

React GOVUK Frontend

govuk-react or govuk-frontend-react — official component libraries.

Accessibility

• 1every form component WCAG 2.1 AA by design (GOV.UK Design System is pre-audited),
• 2screen reader testing (NVDA + JAWS — benefits claimants disproportionately use assistive technology),
• 3mobile-first (benefits claimants frequently access services on mobile — 68% of new claims via mobile in research). PSBAR (Public Sector Accessibility Regulations): monthly axe-core audit published in Accessibility Statement.

Council Tax Reduction Automation

CTR (Council Tax Reduction): means-tested discount on Council Tax bill.

CTR calculation

• 1applicable amount (DWP-defined minimum income standard),
• 2income assessment (earned income, Universal Credit, pension, benefits),
• 3capital assessment (savings above £6,000 reduce CTR — tapered),
• 4CTR percentage (income below applicable amount → maximum CTR, income above → tapered reduction).

Automated CTR

claimant submits income evidence → automated CTR calculation (Python rules engine — replicates DWP Prescribed Requirements for CTR) → provisional CTR shown to claimant before submission → if accepted, CTR applied to Council Tax account (Civica CT API).

Council Tax Support Scheme

each council has discretionary CTR scheme rules (London Borough may have more generous rules than DWP minimum) — rules engine configurable per council.