The Council spent three months reviewing and scrutinising its new draft budget 2022-23. The draft budget was presented to the November Finance Committee meeting and made a recommendation to Council for its December meeting.
Savings have been made on expenditure over the past two years, but for several years there has been a deficit against income. With external costs increasing, and the RPI as of October 2021 at 6%, the recommendation was to increase the Precept to achieve a balanced budget. This means a Band D precept for 2022-23 is expected to be £171.84, which is an increase of £1.30 per month or £15.62 annually.
The Precept is the smallest proportion of the full Council Tax. The Town Council’s income from the Precept will increase from £582,721 to £653,919. This is calculated by multiplying the Precept for a Band D property by the council tax base for Edenbridge. Exemptions and discounts are taken into account and the number of properties in each band is reduced to reflect these. The tax base advised by Sevenoaks District Council (SDC) for 2022/23 is 3,819.62, an increase on the current year’s figure of 89.47.
The Council is proud to be able to provide open spaces for the community which are maintained to the high standards that residents have come to expect and deserve. These include Blossom Park, Mowshurst and the Millennium Wood, the Recreation Ground, Stangrove Park, the four cemeteries and two allotment sites. It owns and maintains Doggetts Barn, Rickards Hall, the Sports Pavilion, the Public Toilets and a few other smaller buildings. It is responsible for 246 streetlights with a replacement programme to provide newer and energy efficient columns. The Council office is open 5-days a week, it promotes and provides a tourism facility for the area, provides a Community Warden, manages the Market, and works with agencies and groups to represent Edenbridge.
The Council will consider adopting the draft budget and any changes at its meeting on 17 January 2022.
Click here for a copy of the draft budget.
Click here for a copy of the December Council minutes.
For more information on the Council’s budgets and precept click here, or visit the Transparency and Finance pages.
