Withdrawal of Council Tax Support Grant by Durham County Council leaves Town Council facing a £145,000 Revenue Budget Shortfall.
The Town Council is in the process of developing its Revenue and Capital Budget for the 2026/27 financial year.
In overall terms, the Town Council is preparing the Revenue Budget on the principle of protecting and maintaining all of our current services, facilities, and events next year.
The Council is also prudently planning to maintain some surplus resources in the budget which will allow it to replenish its balances and reserves.
This will help ensure that we can continue to make capital investment in valued community assets such as cemeteries, allotments, parks and play areas, for the benefit of the community, in the coming years.
In order to do so, the Council was proposing to raise the Town Council proportion of the Council Tax bill by around £5.61 per year (equating to an increase of 2.8%) for the vast majority of local taxpayers i.e. those living in Band A properties. The Town Council Tax currently amounts to 11p in every £1 of Council Tax paid.
This increase would have been below the current rate of inflation and as a result of the Council’s ongoing efforts to cut costs, increase income and deliver value-for-money services.
Sadly, however, the new Reform Administration at Durham County Council has made a decision to withdraw, in full, the Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme Grant funding paid to town and parish councils, despite an expectation by Central Government that this funding is passed on, which will result in a £145,250 loss of revenue for the Town Council next year (representing 7% of the current Council Precept)
This action is effectively forcing parish and town councils to make a choice, at very late notice, between making significant cuts to services and facilities or considering substantial council tax rises for local residents.
The grant cut, if offset via the Council Precept would regrettably result in the Town Council Tax increase rising to £13.86 per year (an increase of 6.92%).
The Town Council is of the view that this grant cut is being imposed on the Town Council with little notice or consultation at a very late stage in the budget setting process, and that making cuts to valued town council services and events is not an acceptable course of action, and has therefore taken the decision to fund the grant cut via the council tax.
This one-off increase will fully offset the financial impact of the grant cut and make the Town Council financially self-sufficient moving forwards.
We hope you will agree that a monthly increase of £1.16 in the Band A Town Council Tax bill is a small price to pay to ensure that all the existing services provided by the Town Council can be protected for another year, despite the actions of Durham County Council in withdrawing the Council Tax Support Grant.
There is more information on the Council’s draft 2026/27 budget proposals, should you wish to read this, on the meetings section of the Council’s website.
Have Your Say
Our annual Budget Survey is your opportunity to tell us what you think.
You can access the survey via this link:
https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/32K01S
The survey is also available in paper form at various community facilities around the town including the Oak Leaf Sports and Golf Complexes, the Town Council Offices and via our website at www.great-aycliffe.gov.uk or on our social media pages.
The survey will close at 12 noon on Wednesday 31st December 2025.