Council Tax

Your Council Tax

Your Council Tax contributes to the budget requirements of Herefordshire Council, your Town or Parish Council and the Police and Fire Authority all of whom provide services to the people of Herefordshire.

As the billing authority, Herefordshire Council collects the Council Tax on behalf of these bodies. For further information regarding the Police or Fire Authority, or for contact information for them, please refer to the leaflets enclosed with your bill. You can also read the leaflet "Your council tax explained 2009/10" (PDF format).

The Council's Budget

The Council's Budget has been set at £137,718,000 for 2009/10 and this represents an increase in Council Tax of 3.9%. In 2009/10 a Dedicated Schools Grant of £84,291,000 is paid directly from Central Government to fund individual schools.

The Council's budget is only partly funded by Central Government with the largest part of 59% or £82,339,000 having to be raised locally through Council Tax. Any changes to the levels of Government funding will have a direct impact on the need to raise the balance of funding through Council Tax.

Compared to the 55 similar authorities, Herefordshire Council receives 17% less grant per head of population than the average. The Council will continue to lobby Government to ensure the specific needs of Herefordshire are recognised and that it receives its fair share of funding.

Independent Examination

An independent examination by the Audit Commission has determined that Herefordshire Council is improving well.

The Council has to build in expected pay and price increases when it calculates the budget for each financial year.  However, the Council has recognised that there are additional significant financial pressures such as increasing waste collection volumes and waste disposal costs along with more stringent recycling targets to achieve. Increasing energy costs have a significant impact on the various buildings managed by the Council.

The Council's strategy

The Council's strategy is to target limited resources to areas of greatest importance. A major drive is underway to achieve significant savings by restructuring services and transforming the way they are delivered by making better use of modern technology, with no reduction in service quality.