Council tax bills in Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge will rise by 35.7% this year after an increase was approved by Town Councillors last night (Monday, January 20th).
Members of Burnham and Highbridge Town Council voted in favour of the increase proposed earlier this month by the council’s Finance and Governance Committee.
There will be a £51.21 per year increase on Band D properties to £194.62 from £143.41 last year. It comes after the council raises the council’s total budget for the coming year to £1,324,115 from £952,901 last year.
The council says the increase – which equates to £1 per week – comes as it has to take on extra ‘devolution’ costs. The Town Council will have to provide local services such as local public toilets, play areas, and floral displays which were previously funded by Somerset Council which says it can no longer afford them due to its financial woes.
Cllr Ganesh Gudka, the Town Council’s Finance and Governance Committee chairman, pictured, told Monday’s meeting: “None of us are happy that we have had to increase the local precept. Times are hard for everyone and we do appreciate that. However, as always, a balance has to be struck. It is important for the town that these local services are preserved,and as all parties have pointed out, if they are not funded, they will disappear. And I truly believe that there is opportunity here for our town to take more control over its services.”
”I would like to recognise how hard officers have worked in trying circumstances to put together this plan and that both Lib Dem and Conservative councillors on the devolution working group have worked together constructively on working through the detail. We agreed the list of priorities and options together and everyone has been clear that we should not take on other costs beyond these services.”
“I should say that it is important to recognise that Somerset Council is having to make the same difficult decisions as every council in the country, many of which are on the verge of bankruptcy. This is not due to mismanagement as some people would have you believe but because of the crippling costs of social care, which have always been forced onto local government with inadequate funding.”
Cllr Peter Clayton added: “All the committees have worked closely together on this – it’s not been party political. We’ve all done our best to provide the best services for the people of Burnham and Highbridge – but that will come at a cost. Somerset unitary council have said that hey are not forcing the Town Council to do anything, however if we want to keep public conveniences open, if we want flower beds, if we want playgrounds looked after, then we will have to do it ourselves as they are not going to fund it from April onwards. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the case. We are determined to keep our services running as smoothly as possible at the least possible cost.”
A Town Council spokesperson adds: “To set the budget this year, the Council has had to face the impact of significant increases in the cost in employer national insurance contributions, in particular, whilst also trying to mitigate the impact of the reduction of services proposed by Somerset Council.”
“It has been communicated by Somerset Council that if the Town Council do not take on the following services at this juncture the community will lose them: the public conveniences, parks and highways/floral maintenance. To assess the economic, social and cultural impact of losing key services in the Burnham & Highbridge area, the Town Council formed a Devolution Work Group this year to specifically address this situation, the advantages of increased autonomy and the additional financial responsibility.”
“With all this in mind, the Town Council has agreed a budget which includes projected income of £129,225 and expenditure of £1,453,340. Details of the income and expenditure can be found on the website – https://burnham-highbridge-tc.gov.uk/. These costs include the work of the Town Council to maintain the cemeteries, administer allotments and fund some of the key events in the towns including fireworks and Christmas lights. The budget also covers the cost of certain public facilities such as CCTV, benches, tree & hedge maintenance, the Princess Theatre and the work of staff to support residents and visitors, as well as the award of grants of £32,700 to community groups. Included within the expenditure are the additional costs in areas such as highways maintenance, floral displays, parks and public conveniences that have previously come under the remit of Somerset Council.”
“The expenditure will be funded by a precept of £1,324,115, which will form part of the council tax along with the requirements of Somerset Council and Police. This equates to an increase in the Town Council element of £51.21 per year to a Band D property to £194.62, a weekly increase of just under £1.00.”
“As the full extent to which Town & Parish Councils will have to take on additional public services is as yet unknown, the Council has decided it would not be prudent to draw down additional funding from reserves at this present point in time.”
“The Council have taken the difficult decision to increase our precept request this year to save essential services, that if lost, would be detrimental to the whole community and future success of Burnham-on-Sea & Highbridge. Throughout the process of setting the budget, officers and councillors have worked hard to prioritise the services most important to our community. The devolution of services to a local level will provide us with an opportunity for greater control over our amenities, the flexibility to choose how costs are balanced against opening times for the public conveniences, the kind of equipment and facilities available in our play parks and the age groups they accommodate and move towards more sustainable planting in our flower beds. In future we hope this will extend to local prioritisation of minor highway repairs. The budget opens the door for an increase in localism and active democracy and the Council hopes all residents will help us shape these priorities in future.”
The Town Council will be seeking local business sponsorship and grants for floral displays to help keep the increases to a minimum.
After reviewing the Town Council’s draft budget during Monday’s meeting, councillors voted in favour of supporting the proposed budget and council tax increase. Councillors decided not to take money from the £402,463 set aside in its reserves.
