Welcome to the Machine
Having graduated from a full time course almost two years ago, I joined a part-time masters course at the same university. The Council, having the graduates best interests at heart immediately sent a Council Tax arrears notice for the amount of £845 - including a 25% discount for living with a full-time student. It should be noted that the full-time student is also my girlfriend, or was until a couple of days ago. I decided it was a good idea to inform the council that I was unemployed, received some support from family members to make ends meet and thus was unable to cough up the amount required. Polite as they were, they informed me that there was no possible way for me to avoid paying the amount in full or in one installment. Overcoming my initial excitement of choices, I repeated that I do not have the extra cash and was unable to pay. Joyfully, they informed me that I had to fill out an application for housing benefit . A housing benefit is given to people of no or low income to ...