Colchester Borough Council has informed the Parish Council that it will reduce the Revenue Support Grant (RSG) for 2013. This means that the income to the village will be reduced by £3,640. Obviously this will have an adverse effect on the services supplied within our village and the Parish Council has looked at all areas of expenditure in creating its 2013/2014 budget.
Income to the village helps pay for a large number of services including:
- Maintenance and upkeep of the children’s play area
- Upkeep and maintenance of the Lorkin Daniel playing field, Poor’s Land and the village heath
- Upkeep of the three village ponds
- Employing the part-time village handymen
- Employment of the Parish Clerk (a statutory requirement)
- The publication of the village bulletin
- Production and maintenance of the village web site
- Liability insurance premiums
- Association fees, licences and external audit fees
Despite significant efficiency savings which has enabled us to absorb some of the inflation increases within our existing level of expenditure, the reduction in the RSG means the Parish Council will need to raise its element of the Council Tax paid to cover both the loss and the remainder of the inflation increase. Currently the amount paid by each “Band D” household is £30.82 p.a. For 2013/2014 the amount paid by an equivalent property will be raised by £3.05 to £33.87 p.a. to compensate for this reduction and take into account inflation. This equates to less than 6p per week per household.
On a positive note West Bergholt Parish Council has managed to secure more than £22,000 of grant funding from Essex County Council during 2012 to help pay for village improvements. We will continue to apply for grants on your behalf to improve village services. In addition, due to good management, the Orpen and John Lampon Halls remain self-financing with any profit earmarked to fund future improvements.
Your Parish Council regrets that it will be necessary to impose this increase in your 2013/2014 council tax payment.
Yours sincerely
John Gili-Ross
Chairman -West BergholtParish Council