Town council to raise tax by 10% over grant cut
GoogleA town council says it has been "forced" to put up its tax by almost 10% because of a grant cut.
Durham County Council has proposed to slash the entirety of the £1m grant it currently gives out each year to some of its town and parish councils, with the plan set to go before councillors for approval on 18 February.
Peterlee Town Council said the 9.93% precept rise was needed to plug a gap of £190,455, which it will lose in funding.
Durham County Council deputy leader Darren Grimes said the Reform-led local authority had done "everything" it could to maintain the grant and had to look at "every option available" to tackle its budget deficit.
"We have done everything we can to maintain grants to town and parish councils long after most other councils made the decision to end them," Grimes said.
"We have consulted on these proposals and carefully reflected on the feedback received over our decision to press ahead with these savings and put them to council on 18 February for approval.
"We face a significant budget challenge next year and our priority must be protecting statutory services for the most vulnerable."
At the end of last year, the county council agreed to remove 100% council tax reductions for low-earners, meaning most residents will have to pay at least 10% of their bills from April.
The £1m grant money is aimed at partly compensating town and parish councils due to the number of their poorer residents claiming the tax reductions.
'Fundamentally unfair'
Peterlee mayor councillor Rob Moore said the decision to withdraw the money had been "imposed" at very short notice, leaving little time to plan.
A spokesperson for the town council said it was informed in November that the grant would be removed in full from April, despite "previous agreements that reductions would continue to be phased".
"Councils were also instructed to set their budgets and submit precepts before Durham County Council has even concluded its public consultation, leaving no opportunity for meaningful engagement with residents," the spokesperson added.
Band A households - the majority of homes in Peterlee - will pay £26.99 more per year when the tax rise comes into effect.
The town council said it had already made savings by removing vacant posts, including a planned Youth Worker job, and reducing budgets for events, grounds maintenance and publicity.
It added no staffing cuts were proposed.
"We believe it is fundamentally unfair that local residents should pay more simply because a higher authority has withdrawn funding from the poorest areas of the county without proper notice or consultation," Moore said.
Grimes said government funding to local councils was becoming "increasingly strained".
"Like the county council, town and parish councils are expected to operate within their own budgets, and yet we are expected to pass on funding that we do not have," he said.
"The financial situation we are in is a situation mirrored across the region."
