Veterans to Get Council Tax Discount in Hammersmith and Fulham
Measure announced as part of VE Day celebrations
The plaque commermorating the planning of the D-Day landings in Hammersmith
May 7, 2025
Hammersmith and Fulham Council is celebrating VE Day by offering local veterans a discount on their council tax. The borough said vets who hold a qualifying HM Armed Forces Veterans Card valid before May 31 are eligible for a 25 per cent discount for the 2026-27 billing period.
The scheme is limited to veterans with two or fewer adults living in the same property. It comes as the council prepares to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day with an event in Hammersmith’s Ravenscourt Park on Saturday, May 10.
Councillor Rowan Ree, cabinet member for finance and reform, said, “Freedom does not come free of charge. This tax cut is a small but fitting way to honour our veterans, who were prepared to pay the ultimate price in defending this country, for which the whole borough is immensely grateful.”
According to the council, it was in Hammersmith and Fulham borough that the Normandy Landings were planned by General Montgomery and others. On May 15, 1944, those plans were presented to General Eisenhower at the former site of St Paul’s School in Hammersmith Road, in the presence of King George VI and Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
In 2022, NATO chose White City for the headquarters of its Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) team. Professor Hugh Milroy OBE PhD, chief executive of Veterans Aid, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service, “I welcome any initiative to support veterans and I am delighted that Hammersmith and Fulham Council are leading the way with such an initiative.”
Major Rudy Vandaele-Kennedy, of the Hammersmith and Fulham-based Coldstream Guards regiment, said, “The veterans in the Hammersmith & Fulham community have given much for the benefit of our country and our people. They have made many sacrifices and done things for the benefit of others and put the needs of others before themselves.
“This a strong recognition of their service which will be much appreciated by them and will help them as well.” The council is a signatory of the Armed Forces Covenant, a pledge to ensure those who serve or have served and their families are supported through services, policy and projects.
To mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the council is holding a week-long series of events, culminating in a free family fun day in Hammersmith’s Ravenscourt Park on Saturday, May 10.
Adrian Zorzut - Local Democracy Reporter