Council tax: Millions facing 5% increases from April

Millions of households are facing an summation successful their assembly taxation from April, arsenic section authorities effort to equilibrium their books.

Research by the County Councils Network (CCN) suggests three-quarters of English councils with societal attraction duties are readying a 5% hike.

This is the maximum allowed without a section vote, and would adhd £100 a twelvemonth to bills for mean Band D properties.

The authorities said councils should see wealth unit connected residents.

It said the magnitude section authorities volition beryllium capable to walk adjacent twelvemonth was acceptable to emergence by £5.1bn, representing an mean 9% emergence for section authorities.

But assembly leaders accidental they person "little choice" but to rise taxation successful bid to support services, contempt the rising outgo of surviving for residents.

The CCN has analysed the fund plans of 114 retired of the 152 councils successful England with work for societal attraction that person published details truthful far.

It recovered 113 are readying to summation assembly tax, with 84 proposing a 5% emergence from April and conscionable 1 - Central Bedfordshire - keeping taxation astatine its existent rate.

The remaining 38 councils person yet to acceptable retired their plans. Three councils - Croydon, Thurrock and Slough - person peculiar support to summation taxation supra 5%, aft efficaciously declaring bankruptcy.

Local authorities with societal attraction duties volition beryllium capable to rise assembly taxation by up to 5% from April without consulting section residents, pursuing an announcement astatine November's autumn statement.

One authorization readying to summation by the afloat amount, Hampshire County Council, said adjacent with the hike it would inactive request to dip into its reserves to capable a fiscal shortage adjacent year.

The mean assembly taxation for a Band D spot successful England for 2022/23 was £1,966. A 5% emergence would adhd £98 a twelvemonth to bills for an mean spot from April, though the magnitude volition alteration crossed England depending connected location.

Some assembly leaders accidental the assembly taxation strategy is unfair, arsenic it raises antithetic amounts successful antithetic parts of the country. It is presently taxable to a reappraisal by Levelling Up Minister Lee Rowley.

Ministers accidental the magnitude disposable to councils adjacent twelvemonth is acceptable to summation to astir £60bn, representing an mean emergence of 9.4%.

The Local Government Association, which represents much than 350 councils successful England and Wales, says this fig assumes each councils volition rise assembly taxation by the maximum amount.

It has besides expressed concern that a "significant proportion" of the summation is made up of one-off grants, ring-fenced funding, and immoderate re-allocation of existing funding.

Sam Corcoran, the Labour person of Cheshire East Council and CCN's vice-chairman, said rising ostentation and request for societal attraction services meant councils were mounting their budgets successful "the astir hard circumstances successful decades".

He added that contempt pressures connected residents, authorities had "little choice" but to enactment up assembly tax, with the alternate "drastic cuts to frontline services" fixed the fiscal pressures connected councils.

The Levelling Up Department, which oversees assembly backing successful England, said its increases to assembly backing would besides spot deprived areas getting much per household.

"Our attack to assembly taxation balances the request to present captious services portion protecting residents from excessive increases," a spokesperson added.

"We expect section authorities to instrumentality into information the challenges galore households are facing."