No rise in council tax agreed in Moorlands

Council tax payers in the Staffordshire Moorlands will not face increases in the coming year from the District Council after it agreed a zero per cent increase.

It means Band D payments across the district are frozen at £163.14.

However, council tax payers will still face overall rises in their bills due to an increase in the elements from Staffordshire County Council and the county’s police and fire services.

The district council has set its budget for providing essential services at £11.7m for 2023/34 – and agreed changes to the council tax reduction scheme to allow more support to be given to households on the lowest incomes.

Councillor Mike Worthington, Cabinet Member for Finance, said: “The rising costs of living continue to affect us all and, at a time when households are already making difficult decisions about how to spend their money, we were very mindful not to add further pressure to stretched budgets. 

“That’s why we’re pleased to announce that our residents will not face increased council tax bills for the next year. At the same, we’re also increasing the support we’re able to offer to our lowest income households.”

The District Council collects council tax on behalf of the County Council, Police and Fire Authorities and town and parish councils but only spends 9 per cent of the total.

The funding is used to provide Council services including affordable housing, waste and recycling, street cleaning, leisure centres, parks and playgrounds development and maintenance, support for local businesses, crime prevention activities, benefits services and elections.

Last month as reported in Daily Focus, Staffordshire County Council approved plans to increasing its council tax element by 4.99 per cent for 2023/24 – which will impact on people across the county.

And the county’s Police and Fire services’ precepts will also rise which will also mean a further hike on this element of the bill.