When I was first elected to Tandridge District Council in May 2021, I was horrified to learn that it was the only local authority in Surrey that required care leavers to pay council tax from the age of 18. In my eyes, this was not right.

 

When leaving care, care leavers don't often feel ready to live independently, with most non-care leavers leaving home at an average age of 23 compared to the age of 18 for care leavers. 

 

Alongside this, according to the Become Charity, care leavers often find themselves in debt due to poor financial education before or when they leave care. Children in care are often not always exposed to how a household budgets their finances, especially as a children's home's finances are managed by an office.

 

It was unjust that in light of all of this that Tandridge District Council was requiring its care leavers to pay council tax from the age of 18. So I moved a motion at the Full Council meeting of 22 July 2021 to exempt care leavers from paying Council tax until their 25th birthday from 1 April 2022. This passed with cross-party support from all political groups and as a result, care leavers in Tandridge now aren't required to pay Council Tax until they turn 25.