The agency values properties for the purpose of Council Tax and for non-domestic rates in England and Wales (in Scotland this function is performed by the Scottish Assessors).
In order to apply this tax it was necessary to value all property in the UK and the Inland Revenue set up the Valuation Office to carry out this task.
[4] The VO soon began to receive requests from other government departments for valuation assistance - a task which it continues to undertake today.
When in 1948 a new system of government equalisation grants to local authorities was introduced uniformity in rating valuation was essential and this could only be provided by a central organisation such as the VO.
[7] In 1993 domestic rating returned in the form of the Council Tax where a residential property's sale price, rather than its rental value, is the basis for assessment.
In another announcement on 4 December 2010 the Department for Communities and Local Government said the revaluation of the Welsh Council Tax bands, pencilled in for 2015, would not now go ahead, and decisions over any future re-valuations should be taken in Cardiff Bay.
The residual functions of The Rent Service were transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions to the Valuation Office Agency on 1 April 2009.
[citation needed] In November 2007, chief executive Andrew Hudson announced to staff a series of measures to improve its service to customers and take account of a reduction in government funding.
The plans included more centralisation of routine processing functions; better management of data; a reduction in the space the Agency occupies through digitisation of records; and the introduction of more flexible ways of working, supported by enhanced technology.
His replacement at the VOA was Penny Ciniewicz, who had joined the Civil Service in 1997 and since then has worked in the Department of Trade and Industry and the Cabinet Office.
As part of VOA 2015 the CEO abolished the 'group' structure and its associated group valuation officer position, organising staff by function into business streams rather than by location.
During the period of 2015 - 2020, just about every aspect of the "Targeted Operating Model" used for VOA 2015 was dismantled as the system did not work with such a small Agency, and was also very unpopular with staff.
The online service allows users to "claim" a property and to check the information the VOA hold, this record can then be amended or challenged and if not resolved then they can move to appeal.
Their findings were that the service was broken, delays were common, there were issues with staffing in specialist roles and public confidence had been eroded.