A Leicestershire council is proposing to increase council tax by the maximum amount allowed in its budget proposals for 2025/26. Harborough District Council (HDC) has put forward a 2.99 per cent increase in its proportion of the annual charge, along with a range of other measures to help it balance the books.
The council’s cabinet – which comprises councillors who are responsible for making decisions about the day-to-day running of the authority – will meet to discuss the budget plan on Monday, January 20. Following this, the proposals will go out for consultation with the public.
The proposed increase in council tax equates to £5.32 a year for a Band D property. The maximum that local authorities can increase council tax by is 2.99 per cent or £5, whichever is the greater for Band D. The overall cost of the tax will also include payments for the police, fire and ambulance services, and services provided by Leicestershire County Council.
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The district council’s other budget proposals include:
- the purchase of a new waste fleet, including 27 refuse, recycling and food waste collection vehicles and a number of ride-on mowers and street cleansing and other vehicles;
- investing in 33 “faster and easier to use” car parking payment machines;
- buying three temporary accommodation properties across the district to support residents in need;
- setting up a community wellbeing programme which would see it investing £20,000 towards healthy lifestyle initiatives such as walks and activity sessions in community venues
- additional staffing resources to support areas including planning, climate and waste, asset management, open spaces, housing, democratic services and elections;
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running an annual residents’ newsletter and any special editions that may be required;
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continuing with its £1 million community grants fund in 2025-26 and 2026-27, and investing an additional £2 million over two years;
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refurbishing Wadkins Pavillion in Thurnby and Welland Park Bowls Pavillion for community use;
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starting a programme of maintenance of six closed churchyards, three in 2025-26 at Bringhurst, Catthorpe and Husbands Bosworth, one in 2026-27 in Fleckney and two in 2027-28 at Leire and Skeffington;
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increasing solar battery provision at the Harborough Innovation Centre (HIC) in 2025-26 and at Harborough Enterprise Centre (HEC) in 2026-27 as further contributions to meeting the council’s 2030 net zero target;
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and remediation work on and investment in The Symington Building as a listed building and Market Hall, contributing to reduction in carbon emissions.
HDC is proposing no increases in the cost to users of a number of its services, including garden waste bin collections and car parking charges. Free parking on three Saturdays in December on the run up to Christmas would also be kept.
Councillor Mark Graves, Harborough District Council’s cabinet lead for finance services, said: “I am delighted that we can continue to put money back into our communities through continuing our £1 million Community Grant Fund. We don’t want to sit on big reserves, we want to use our resources to support our valued community groups.
“We have made it clear that we are community focused, that we want to support all corners and parishes in our district, and this budget delivers that commitment.”
Councillor Phil Knowles, leader of the district council, said: “Not only are we continuing to put money into communities, we are also refurbishing our community assets that are in desperate need. We will get them back into safe, usable condition for our staff and residents for the long term. We will also be continuing our investment in driving down our carbon emissions to meet our 2030 net zero target.”
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