Thousands of Kirklees residents will find credits on their Council Tax bills in the next few weeks as the authority makes sure everyone gets the support they are entitled to with their energy bills.

The vast majority of bill payers have already been paid their £150 payment to support with the rising cost of energy bills, initiated by the Government.

Residents who pay Council Tax through direct debit have already been paid automatically and thousands of others have successfully applied.

But the council wants to make sure no one misses out on the support so will be crediting the accounts of remaining residents in the coming weeks.

Clr Paul Davies, Cabinet member for corporate services, said: “Our teams have been working hard to get energy support payments into the hands of our residents to be able to provide support as soon as possible.

“Government guidance stated that we were only allowed to credit Council Tax accounts where explicitly requested by the household, or after the household has had a fair opportunity to claim the rebate through alternative payment means.

“The deadline for distributing this payment has been set for September 30, which is why we are now proactively crediting outstanding Council Tax bills to ensure no-one misses out.”

Approximately 24,000 residents have not yet applied, and these bills will be automatically credited with the rebate.

Council Tax bills will be recalculated and another one sent. Once a new bill is received, people can still request a refund to their bank accounts if they wish by completing an online form.