Council tax is set to rise in Gravesham, with Band D properties facing a hike of £4.95 under new 'budget for recovery'.

A Gravesham council meeting last night saw the budget approved for the coming year, with council leader John Burden stating it would help the council move on from the pandemic.

Members voted to set the council tax for 2022/23 at £217.98 for a Band D property, an increase of £4.95, although the council stresses 58% of Gravesham homes fall into Bands A-C and their increases will be lower than £4.95.

Cllr Burden said the authority was now looking ahead and budgeting to deliver projects it knew were important to local people, after having helped residents and businesses in lockdown.

“These continue to be challenging times for everyone, households and local councils included," he told the meeting. "But while our income streams have been badly affected by the Covid pandemic, we are doing our very best to use the money available to us to deliver a Gravesham to be proud of.

“Unlike some other local councils our finances are relatively stable, meaning we are able to continue to provide the frontline services you expect while still looking to deliver on our major promises, such as building a new leisure centre to replace Cascades.

“There are other, smaller measures too. For example, again this year we are not raising charges in our car parks, keeping those at the levels they were at in 2019 while still providing free parking on Saturdays.

“Looking to the future, we do face a budget gap a little way down the line, but our good financial management means we have time to prepare for that and lessen any impact on services when the time comes.”

Key commitments included in the budget include more than £7,500,000 set aside for a replacement leisure centre for Cascades in Gravesend, £150,000 to fund a fly-tipping taskforce to clear rear access ways across the borough; funds for the council-owned home building programme; £700,000 to help preserve the borough’s heritage assets and civic buildings; and £160,000 for play equipment.

Cllr Burden added: “Of course, all of these initiatives cost money.

“For more than 10 years, the amount of money local councils receive from central government to support our services has been steadily falling. It’s dropped by 11% in the last five years alone, while other income streams such as receipts from our theatre and car parking fees have declined, especially since the pandemic hit.

“In 2010/11, Council Tax made up 41% of this authority’s income. Today, it makes up 70%, so you can see how increasingly dependent we are on it to fund our services. Despite that, our share of this year’s council tax will rise by less than the rate of inflation.”

When charges from Kent County Council, the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner, and Kent Fire and Rescue Service are added, the total bill for a Band D property will be £1,989.72. Households who live in areas with parish councils will also pay a charge to them.

Cllr Burden also outlined the continuing work to support those most badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said: “While for most it feels as if some sort of normality is returning, there are still people and businesses struggling badly as a direct result of the virus and the lockdowns put in place to stop its spread.

“This authority has worked tirelessly to support those who need our help, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.”

Work and funds noted by the council over the past year included £66,660 in winter food and fuel grants; £46,615 in additional food and fuel grants; £2.17million of Additional Restrictions Grant funding to businesses since December 2020; and further grants to non-essential businesses in reopening safely as Covid-19 restrictions lifted through Restart grants, totalling £3.66million.

Cllr Burden said: “I am proud of the support this authority has given our local community over the past two years.

“These have been trying times for all, but we look to the future with confidence in our finances and in the plans we have to continue to make Gravesham a great place to live and work, now and in the future."