Council leader justifies 23 per cent hike in Trowbridge tax bill

Cllr Stewart Palmen says the increase in the town’s ‘precept’ was sparked by “several pressures” coming together.

Trowbridge has taken over services from Wiltshire Council, high inflation has helped to push up the cost of living, energy bills have increased and the council has approved a nationally-agreed seven per cent rise in staff wages.

Cllr Stewart Palmen, the LibDem leader of Trowbridge Town Council, has justified the 23 per cent in the town's share of Wiltshire's Council Tax bill. (Image: Freelancer)

In a post on the town council’s website, Cllr Palmen said: “Inflation has been high and that’s pushed costs up, including a nationally agreed staff pay rise of seven per cent.

“Our fixed rate energy deal came to an end and that’s more than doubled our utility costs. But the biggest pressures are those caused by taking on services that Wiltshire Council used to provide.

“The biggest of these, and the biggest factor in the tax rise, is street cleaning and grounds maintenance. This has meant taking on extra staff and buying new equipment. We have also taken over maintenance of the town’s Down Cemetery.

“We could have shaved some money off the budget in various ways – for example cutting our Active Trowbridge programme, postponing projects like the new park toilets and bandstand repairs, or cancelling events such as the Uniform Services Day or Christmas Lights switch on.

“But we thought that people would regard these as worth keeping given the actual cost of the tax rise is about £1 a week for a Band D property.”

In the 2024/25 financial year, a Band D household will pay £1,805.73 to Wiltshire Council, or 74 per cent of the total bill, of which £1,545.45 is for basic council tax and £260.28 for an “adult social care levy” earmarked for adult social care.

The Trowbridge precept is £270.65 or around 11 per cent of the total. The police precept is similar to that of the town council and the Dorset and Wiltshire Fire & Rescue precept is around £100.

Cllr Palmen added: “Our Band D precept at £271 is lower than those of Salisbury and Chippenham, which, like Trowbridge, are classed as principal settlements. Theirs are both in the £300-365 range.

“No-one likes paying tax but the precept level is also a measure of the money being spent on services and with Wiltshire struggling and having to delegate things to us, we have had to step up to being a bigger spender.

“Town councils are not required by law to do very much but we have chosen to provide the Civic Centre, Active Trowbridge, community events, park facilities and other services because we think our town needs and values these things.”

Cllr Palmen said demand for social care for older people, disabled people and children – which is the biggest spending area for top-tier councils like Wiltshire – has been soaring, largely due to an ageing population.

“That’s reduced the funds available for everything else – roads, waste collection, school repairs and leisure facilities. In Wiltshire, we have seen cuts to many areas over the past decade including the virtual disappearance of youth services.

“A cross-party committee of MPs recently reported that ‘the current local government funding system was broken’.

“When the government started cutting council funds a decade ago the reason given was the need for ‘austerity’ following the 2008 financial crash.

“But the government has also cut other taxes, partly funded by the cuts in grants to councils. Unfortunately, taxpayers in Trowbridge are now paying the price to restore services to a decent quality.”