By Andrew Topping, Local Democracy Reporter
Residents in Newark and Sherwood face paying the District Council more tax from April after the authority outlined its budget-balancing plans.
The Conservative-led council plans to raise its portion of bills by 1.94 per cent – significantly below the maximum 2.99 per cent increase it is allowed to take.
For Band D homes, it means £3.60 more being paid directly to funding the authority from April – or £189.20 in total for the year.
This is only the increase and total bill for the district council, with the majority of the total tax rise coming from Nottinghamshire County Council.
The county council is raising bills by 4.84 per cent and takes roughly 76 per cent of all tax bills across Newark and Sherwood.
The district council’s portion of bills works out at slightly above eight per cent, with the remainder of the bill funding the police and fire services.
Both the emergency services are also proposing increases in their tax precepts for 2023/24.
The Newark and Sherwood element of the bill will also lead to Band A homes paying the authority £2.40 more from April, or £126.13 for the year.
Band B homes will see their bills to the district council increase by £2.80 to £147.16, with Band C bills rising by £3.20 to £168.18.
When also factoring in the county council, police and fire service tax bills, the total Newark and Sherwood Band A-D rates are:
- Band A: £1,515.14 (total increase of £70.14)
- Band B: £1,767.93 (total increase of £81.30)
- Band C: £2,019.77 (total increase of £92.21)
- Band D: £2,271.61 (total increase of £103.11)
It comes as the authority outlined a series of new support measures to help residents struggling with the cost of living crisis.
The new proposals include fuel vouchers for people struggling with energy bills and food and clothing vouchers to support families with school uniforms, warm clothes and food.
Additional signposting for support agencies will be created on the authority’s website to outline groups helping communities with financial struggles.
A new mobile debt advice service will be created in communities alongside a service to ensure people are taking the full amount of benefits they are entitled to.
And there will be a voucher scheme to help people access local food clubs if they can’t afford the £3.50 needed to access services.
It comes alongside household and hygiene packs including products like shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, sanitary towels, toilet rolls, bleach and other cleaning items.
The measures will be presented to the council’s cabinet meeting on Tuesday, February 21 alongside the council tax plans.
It will be funded through a new £150,000 pot aimed at supporting residents through the ongoing crisis.
Cllr David Lloyd (Con), the council’s leader, said: “Staff across the entire council have been working hard to put these proposals together.
“We desperately want to do all we can to support the people living and working in our district.
“We are all feeling the rising cost of interest rates, increased costs for services, fuel, energy and food.
“The measures being proposed, if approved, should complement the support we are already providing to those most in need by introducing even more measures from a wide range of services.”
If supported by the cabinet next week, the council tax plans will be presented to the March 9 full council meeting.
