COUNCIL tax bills for the typical household in the Kingswood area will top £2,500 for the first time from next month.
South Gloucestershire Council approved a 4.99% increase – the maximum allowed without calling a referendum – at its annual budget meeting in February.
It takes the authority’s basic charge to residents with homes in the average Band D tax bracket up by £94.66, from £1,904.91 to £1,999.57.
The council also levies a ‘special expenses’ charge for neighbourhood facilities it provides. The rest of the overall bill is made up of charges from the town council, police and fire service.
Kingswood Town Council is keeping its charges the same as for the current year, meaning £98.87 for a Band D household. Avon & Somerset’s police and crime commissioner Clare Moody is raising charges for a Band D tax payer by £15 from £293.20 to £308.20. Avon Fire Authority is raising its annual charge by £5 to £95.43, taking the overall bill above £2,500.
Council leader, Cllr Maggie Tyrrell, said: “We’ve taken a responsible and planned approach to balance the budget for the next two years. This means using our reserves alongside making efficiencies, changing the way that some services are delivered, and longer-term financial planning.
“We, like councils across the country, continue to face rising demand for statutory services. Social care for the elderly and disabled, education and children’s social services. We have had to balance how we ask local people to contribute to these increases, with taking a long, hard and ongoing look at every penny we spend.
“This is a sensible, prudent budget, for today and for the future. I’m pleased that it includes commitments and investments that will improve people’s lives, in schools, through social care and on our high streets.”
South Gloucestershire Council co-leader, Cllr Ian Boulton, said: “This budget will deliver for local people. We can’t do everything we want to do right now, but we want to provide clarity and transparency, not empty words or hollow rhetoric.
“Where there are tough choices to make, we will make them, and we will talk and listen to our residents about them. This budget allows us to be true to our principles and those we know the people of South Glos share.”