8 UK areas could be forced to pay much more council tax (Image: Getty)
Millions of council tax bills could rise by as much as a staggering £848 per year overnight after several councils in England and Wales asked for special permission to raise bills above the annual legal limit.
The unpopular monthly bill pays for everything from to social care, road repairs and libraries and normally can only be increased by a maximum of 4.99% legally without special permission being granted by central government.
But as many as eight UK local authorities are seeking much, much higher bill increases for 2025 which, if approved, would see some households’ bills increase by as much as 25%, or £848.76 overnight.
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The average council tax for a typical band D property in England is currently £1,668 per year, or roughly £169 per month.
A 25% increase could slap another £42.25 onto that bill, taking the total to £211.25. That’s a £420 increase per year.
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, which is requesting a 25% rise. In the borough’s Bisham parish, the local authority currently charges its council tax from £1,131.75 per year for Band A, right up to £3,395.24 for the top band, Band H. The ‘average’ band, Band D, is charged at £1,697.62 per year, slightly above the England national average.
It means those in the cheapest Band A properties will pay £282 per year more if the 25% rise is granted, while those in Band H will pay a staggering £848.75 more. Those in Band D, in the middle, will pay £424 more per year.
The council said it had inherited a ‘horror show’ from the previous government and needs to raise bills to avoid ‘effective bankruptcy’.
Councils in areas from Yorkshire to Birmingham, London and the South as well as South Wales are all looking to push households’ bills up by much more than 4.99% and if allowed to do so the increases would take effect from April 1, 2025.
These are the councils currently asking the government for permission to increase their council tax bills and by how much:
- Bradford – 14.99%
- Birmingham 10%
- Carmathenshire 10%
- Cheshire East 10%
- Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead 25%
- Slough 7.99%
- Newham, London 10%
- Hampshire 15%
Bradford City Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said the council is seeking permission to raise council tax rate by 14.99%, including 2% on the social care precept, and that the decision has “not been taken lightly”.
She said: “After 14 years of reductions in funding from central government we have been left in an unsustainable financial position…we will have to continue to make difficult decisions to ensure a stable financial future.
“This decision to request a one-off increase in council tax beyond the usual 4.99% has not been taken lightly. We realise that no one wants to see an increase in council tax when other bills are also rising.
“That’s why, if approved, we’d put in place a fund to support the least well off.”
Councils will need to approach the government’s Ministry of Housing and Local Communities, usually in tandem with a local referendum to get special permission for increases.