Child Benefit
Please note that information on claiming for Child Benefit can be found on the Child Benefit web page of the Gov.uk website.
Summary
Child benefit is a payment to people bringing up children and young persons and is designed to help with the extra cost this entails. It is paid to those responsible for bringing up a child who is under 16, or under 20 if they stay in approved education or training. Only one person can get child benefit for a child. There is no limit to how many children that can be claimed for.
A high income child benefit tax charge was introduced in January 2013, where those with incomes above a threshold will pay a tax charge or may choose to opt out. Some families may decide not to register for child benefit if they subsequently must opt out.
The figures are for August 2023.
- In Lancashire-12, 134,200 families received child benefit for 231,655 eligible children.
- In Lancashire-14, it was 171,295 families that received the benefit for 298,840 eligible children.
- Preston (17,135) and Lancaster (13,905) had the highest number of families receiving the benefit in Lancashire-12. Ribble Valley (5,770) had the fewest families in receipt.
- Blackburn with Darwen (20,695) had the highest number in Lancashire-14. Blackpool (16,400) was third highest.
- Families with one or two children in receipt were in the majority in Lancashire-12 (85.0%) and in Lancashire-14 (84.1%). (UK=85.1%).
- Ribble Valley (89.5%), Fylde (88.2%) and Chorley (88.2%) had the highest percentage of families in receipt with one or two children. Blackburn with Darwen (78.1%), Pendle (78.3%) and Hyndburn (81.4%) had the lowest.
- Out of the total families registered, the percentage of families that opted out was 6.5% in Lancashire-12 and 5.6% in Lancashire-14, which are lower than the UK (9.7%).
Families receiving child benefit, family size, number of children and families opted out - August 2023
| Area | Families receiving child benefit | Percentage of families with 1 or 2 children | Percentage of families with 3+ children | Total number of children | Percentage of families that have opted out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burnley | 12,050 | 82.0 | 18.0 | 21,620 | 2.3 |
| Chorley | 12,475 | 88.2 | 11.8 | 20,640 | 10.1 |
| Fylde | 7,220 | 88.2 | 11.8 | 11,865 | 9.9 |
| Hyndburn | 10,395 | 81.4 | 18.7 | 18,735 | 2.2 |
| Lancaster | 13,905 | 85.7 | 14.3 | 23,895 | 6.6 |
| Pendle | 12,185 | 78.3 | 21.7 | 22,910 | 3.1 |
| Preston | 17,135 | 82.3 | 17.7 | 30,545 | 5.0 |
| Ribble Valley | 5,770 | 89.5 | 10.6 | 9,460 | 12.9 |
| Rossendale | 8,250 | 86.0 | 13.9 | 13,945 | 7.0 |
| South Ribble | 11,985 | 88.1 | 11.9 | 19,865 | 7.7 |
| West Lancashire | 11,820 | 87.1 | 12.8 | 19,725 | 8.8 |
| Wyre | 11,015 | 87.3 | 12.7 | 18,440 | 6.4 |
| Lancashire-12 | 134,200 | 85.0 | 15.0 | 231,655 | 6.5 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | 20,695 | 78.1 | 21.9 | 38,820 | 2.7 |
| Blackpool | 16,400 | 84.4 | 15.6 | 28,365 | 1.7 |
| Lancashire-14 | 171,295 | 84.1 | 15.9 | 298,840 | 5.6 |
| North West | 820,585 | 84.0 | 16.0 | 1,435,280 | 7.0 |
| England | 5,829,755 | 84.9 | 15.1 | 10,087,870 | 10.1 |
| United Kingdom | 6,907,645 | 85.1 | 14.9 | 11,919,150 | 9.7 |
Source: HM Revenue & Customs - Child benefit: annual release
Page updated 23 January 2025