Council Tax in Herefordshire to be raised by 4.9%

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Sunday, 28 January 2018 21:41

Herefordshire Council has approved the 2018/19 budget, which includes the setting of Council Tax rates which will start in April 2018.

A total Council Tax increase of 4.9% has been approved by Full Council. This will increase the band D charge from £1,376.50 to £1,443.95 in 2018/19 (around £1.30 a week).

In order to keep Council Tax as low as possible, the adult social care precept will remain at 2% and will be spent on providing adult social care. Core Council Tax will be set at 2.9% (a 1% rise on last year).

Increasing the core Council Tax gives Herefordshire Council the flexibility to spend the additional finance on all council services, such as roads and waste, in addition to adult social care.

Councillor Paul Rone, Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said: “Around a quarter of Herefordshire residents are over the age of 65 and this will be around a third of all residents by 2030. People are living longer, but they are not necessarily healthier, and this puts pressure on our health and social care services.

“Three quarters of your Council Tax is spent looking after around 3,200 of Herefordshire residents and until it affects you personally you don’t realise what a vital service adult social care is. The adult social care precept, set by the government, will replace funding that has been removed by central government. By 2020, central government funding will be cut completely, so we need to look at ways to afford to pay for the services the council delivers and increasing Council Tax is one way to help fund these services.”

Changes to Council Tax will come into effect in April 2018.