Council Tax Leaflet

2010/2011

Good value local services Lichfield District Council delivers a wide range of local services in your area. For around £2.72* a week, we hope you’ll agree they are good value. Find out more about the services we deliver inside this leaflet. *Based on an average family home (Band D property).

An average local home pays £2.72 a week for local services delivered by Lichfield District Council – here’s what we do with that money:

To find out more online, follow any D the /links of listed. Just type in www.lichfielddc.gov.uk then add the /link For example: D /recycling www.lichfielddc.gov.uk/recycling

D /clearstreets · We’re cutting the amount of dog poo, litter and dumped rubbish in the district. We’ve fined 68 people for not cleaning up after their dogs or littering, and prosecuted four. · The £3.5 million transformation of our city centre parks has started, thanks to funding from Heritage Lottery Fund/ Big Lottery Fund.

D /hlf 2

· We helped over 7,000 people to get the housing or council tax benefits they need.

D /benefits

· Our planning service is one of the best in the country. Apply online, or find out what’s being planned near you.

· Recycling went blue this year, with over 40,000 new bins delivered to local homes.

You’ve said you like the new bins, they are easier to use, and streets are cleaner because rubbish can’t blow out of them.

· Our streets are clearer and safer thanks to our new team of parking wardens who have been patrolling our roads and car parks.

D /healthandwellbeing

Developing our district

Making the district cleaner and greener

D /recycling

· We worked with South Staffordshire Primary Care Trust to open a new health and well being centre in Burntwood.

D /planning · We’re working with partners to help bring the Staffordshire Hoard home to the region. www.artfund.org Looking after you · We’ve helped to stop 67 people and families from becoming homeless.

D /preventinghomelessness · We helped over 600 people to insulate their homes and improve their heating. www.warmandgreen.co.uk · Hundreds of people and families found a new home through the new UChoose partnership. www.uchoosehomes.co.uk

· We help people get thier extensions and building alterations safe and right.

D /building control Helping kids to play · Nearly 1,000 children had a great time on our summer playschemes. · Thousands of kids got out and about with our play rangers in local parks.

D /playschemes

D /playrangers

· We opened new play areas in Alrewas, Fazeley, Burntwood and Handsacre.

D /play

Getting out and about · 6,000 people helped us to celebrate Proms in style, with face painters, pancakes, fireworks and more.

D /lichfieldproms · Our award winning tourist information service helped to attract nearly three million visitors into local hotels, shops and attractions. www.visitlichfield.co.uk · Over 100,000 people attended performances at the Lichfield Garrick in 2009. www.lichfieldgarrick.com · We extended our service into rural areas this year, so even more people are getting out and about with our community buses.

D /communitytransport · We use our licensing powers to help make sure your town centres are safe and pleasant places to eat, drink and visit.

D /licensing · We've helped more than 1,500 over 60s to travel for free with their new bus passes.

D /buspasses

· Need to retrain or learn a new skill? It’s even easier now, thanks to new UK Online and learndirect courses at Venture House.

D /venturehouse Helping you stay fit and well · Nearly one million people got active at our leisure centres. Thousands of you enjoyed cut price activities, from badminton to swimming, with a Leisure Activity Passport.

D /leisureactivitypassport · Local footballers celebrated the building of new changing rooms in Hammerwich.

D /hammerwichchangingrooms Looking after local businesses, clubs and organisations · We are investing £639,000 over the next three years in services such as Relate, the Lichfield Festival, and Citizens Advice.

D /localfunding

· We gave out thousands of pounds in small grants to local organisations – from cycling clubs, to disabled swimming courses.

D /grantaid Looking after the environment · We started essential safety work on Chasewater’s eastern dam, which will ensure it is safe in years to come. Thanks to all the clubs who use the reservoir for their support and patience.

D /chasewaterdamblog · Chasewater Green Park projects won a prestigious Green Apple Award, and the University of Birmingham formally signed up to the project.

D /www.chasewatergreenpark.org · We’re working with local environment groups, as part of Low Carbon Lichfield (LoCaL), to help people to cut their carbon footprint.

D /gogreen Attracting investment and local jobs · The district is still attracting over £1 million investment a week, which is helping to create hundreds of local jobs – from Lichfield South to Fradley Business Park.

D /developmentbook 3

We are one of the lowest charging councils in the country – by around £25 a year!

We’ve kept our council tax increase as low as possible this year (3%), which will mean an average rise in the district council element of your bill of just 8p a week, or £4.12 a year. The council tax you pay funds just 10% of the services we deliver. We also receive government grants and use income from our leisure centres and planning fees to help fund services. This year our government grant increased by only 0.9 %, which is below inflation and doesn’t cover annual increases in our costs such as fuel and petrol. To address the shortfall we’re continuing to make our services as efficient as possible and cut costs where we can. Find out more on page 7.

How have your payments increased?

Precepting Authority

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So where will this money go?

Only 9.7% of your bill is used by Lichfield District Council – that’s around £141* a year. The vast majority (around £1,028) of your council tax payment is passed to Staffordshire County Council, and just over £284 of your payment is shared between parish councils, the fire and police services. *Based on an average family home (Band D property).

Where does your money go?

2009/10 (Last year)

2010/11 (This year)

Who receives what % of our bill

How much each service costs you each week

Average Parish / Town Council

£36.75

£37.36

2.6%

£0.72

Fire & Rescue Authority

£65.73

£67.64

4.7%

£1.30

Lichfield District Council

£137.44

£141.56

9.7%

£2.72

Police Authority

£172.71

£177.61

12.2%

£3.42

Staffordshire County Council

£1,009.61

£1,028.81

70.8%

£19.78

Total amount payable (Band D)

£1,422.24

£1,452.98

100%

£27.94

Annual Increase

Staffordshire County Council

£19.20

(+1.9%)

Police Authority

£4.90

(+2.8%)

Lichfield District Council

£4.12

(+3.0%)

Fire & Rescue Authority

£1.91

(+2.9%)

Average Parish/Town Council

£0.61

(+1.7%)

Total amount payable (Band D)

£30.74

(+2.2%)

So why has your bill increased?

Lichfield District Council only keeps a small percentage of the money you pay. Your total bill will also have increased by more than this because the amounts charged by the Staffordshire County Council, parish councils, the police and fire service have also increased.

Where else do we get money from?

The services Lichfield District Council provides are not just paid by council tax, which contributes just 10% of our funding. We also get money from:

37% Housing Benefit and General Grants

0% Interest on Investments 40% Income

2% Revenue Reserves 11% Central (amounts set by for Government service spending) Grants 10% Council Tax Payers

District services you help to fund

2009/10 (last year)

2010/11 (this year)

The services we deliver include:

We spent £’000 on services

We made £’000 income

Our net spend was £’000

We will We project spend £’000 £’000 on services income

Our net spend is set to be £’000

Collecting and disposing of waste and recycling

3,639

-1,258

2,381

3,376

2,218

-1,158

Sports activities, leisure centres, playschemes and more

7,090

-3,967

3,123

7,295

-4,382

2,913

Cleaning streets and roads

612

-95

517

672

-152

520

Environmental health: inspecting restaurants, bars and clubs for food hygiene, noise, other issues and more.

1,373

-305

1,068

1,079

-286

793

Planning and building control: processing planning applications and ensuring developments meet required standards

4,543

-2,546

1,997

3,462

-1,807

1,655

Housing and welfare services

1,452

-500

952

1,350

-499

851

Providing council tax and housing benefits and concessionary fares

21,047

-19,789

1,258

21,261

-20,195

1,066

Boosting our economy through economic development and tourism

1,979

-1,670

309

1,777

-1,544

233

General cultural and commercial services

5,715

-3,880

1,835

4,812

-4,510

302

Corporate activities

2,940

-407

2,533

2,637

-419

2,218

Service spend/income

8,231

-6,976

1,255

7,705

-6,643

1,062

Capital, pension and earmarked reserves

0

-3,793

-3,793

0

-1,328

-1,328

Interest receipts/payments

0

-284

-284

260

-175

85

Use of reserves

0

-1,956

-1,956

0

-1,164

-1,164

Total Lichfield District Council budget requirement

58,621

-47,426

11,195

55,686

-44,262

11,424

Last year the average district council tax bill was £162.88 – that’s £25.44 higher than ours which was £137.44.

5

Council tax: What you will pay Use the table below to find out how much your council tax charge will be this year.

The amount you pay depends on where you live (your parish) and the value of your home (your valuation band). To find out more about your valuation band, pick up a copy of the Information about your council tax leaflet 2010/2011. If you have any questions call 01543 308000. The figures do not include any discounts or benefit entitlement that you may receive.

6

Your house is placed in one of eight council tax bands (A to H),using the valuation carried out by the District Valuer in 1991. The amount of council tax you pay will depend on the value of your property. Band D (shown below) is used to calculate the council tax for each property and to compare ourselves to others. The bands are worked out as a proportion of the band D amount

Proportion of Band D

Band A (6/9)

Band B (7/9)

Band C (8/9)

Band D (1)

Band E (11/9)

Band F (13/9)

Band G (15/9)

Band H (2)

Alrewas

962.07

1,122.43

1,282.77

1,443.12

1,763.81

2,084.51

2,405.19

2,886.24

Armitage-with-Handsacre

967.73

1,129.03

1,290.32

1,451.61

1,774.19

2,096.78

2,419.34

2,903.22

Burntwood

963.11

1,123.64

1,284.16

1,444.68

1,765.72

2,086.77

2,407.79

2,889.36

Clifton Campville with Thorpe Constantine

965.27

1,126.15

1,287.03

1,447.91

1,769.67

2,091.43

2,413.18

2,895.82

Colton

965.68

1,126.64

1,287.58

1,448.53

1,770.42

2,092.33

2,414.21

2,897.06

Curborough & Elmhurstand Farewell & Chorley

951.73

1,110.36

1,268.98

1,427.60

1,744.84

2,062.09

2,379.33

2,865.20

Drayton Bassett

974.95

1,137.45

1,299.94

1,462.43

1,787.41

2,112.40

2,437.38

2,924.86

Edingale

970.68

1,132.47

1,294.25

1,456.03

1,779.59

2,103.16

2,426.71

2,912.06

Elford

972.07

1,134.10

1,296.11

1,458.12

1,782.14

2,106.18

2,430.19

2,916.24

Fazeley

969.74

1,131.37

1,293.00

1,454.62

1,777.87

2,101.12

2,424.36

2,909.24

Fradley and Streethay

967.87

1,129.19

1,290.50

1,451.81

1,774.43

2,097.06

2,419.68

2,903.62

Hammerwich

953.39

1,112.29

1,271.19

1,430.09

1,747.89

2,065.69

2,383.48

2,860.18

Hamstall Ridware

958.13

1,117.83

1,277.52

1,437.21

1,756.59

2,075.97

2,395.34

2,874.42

Harlaston

961.57

1,121.85

1,282.11

1,442.37

1,762.89

2,083.43

2,403.94

2,884.74

Hints and Canwell

962.49

1,122.91

1,283.33

1,443.74

1,764.57

2,085.41

2,406.23

2,887.48

King's Bromley

958.82

1,118.63

1,278.44

1,438.24

1,757.85

2,077.46

2,397.06

2,876.48

Lichfield

978.15

1,141.18

1,304.21

1,467.23

1,793.28

2,119.34

2,445.38

2,934.46

Longdon

955.16

1,114.36

1,273.56

1,432.75

1,751.14

2,069.53

2,387.91

2,865.50

Mavesyn Ridware

965.07

1,125.93

1,286.77

1,447.62

1,769.31

2,091.01

2,412.69

2,895.24

Shenstone

967.75

1,129.06

1,290.35

1,451.64

1,774.22

2,096.82

2,419.39

2,903.28

Swinfen and Packington

955.57

1,114.84

1,274.10

1,433.36

1,751.88

2,070.41

2,388.93

2,866.72

Wall

959.47

1,119.40

1,279.31

1,439.22

1,759.04

2,078.88

2,398.69

2,878.44

Weeford

954.77

1,113.90

1,273.03

1,432.16

1,750.42

2,068.68

2,386.93

2,864.32

Whittington and Fisherwick

968.56

1,130.00

1,291.42

1,452.85

1,775.70

2,098.57

2,421.41

2,905.70

Wigginton and Hopwas

957.92

1,117.58

1,277.24

1,436.89

1,756.20

2,075.51

2,394.81

2,873.78

Parish council precepts

2009/10 (Last year)

How much parish council tax do you pay in your area?

Each parish receives an amount (precept) to help them deliver services in the local area. Find out what your parish council receives and how much you will pay for the services in your local area using the table opposite.

We’re saving money and getting more efficient So what’s an efficiency saving?

It’s when we reduce the amount it costs us to run a service, without cutting back on the service we deliver (or reducing our effectiveness). Here’s the efficiency savings we’ve made, together with those our local partners have achieved, since April 2008.

Organisation

Savings achieved by March ‘09 March ‘10 £,000 £,000

Equivalent saving (Band D)

National average

Find your parish from the list below

Parish council tax precept (£)

2010/11 (This year) Parish council tax charge (average home Band D) (£)

Parish council tax precept (£)

Parish council tax charge (average home Band D) (£)

Alrewas

38,000

28.81

34,000

27.50

Armitage with Handsacre

55,929

32.84

61,522

35.99

Burntwood

251,380

29.02

251,380

29.06

Clifton Campville with Thorpe Constantine

11,065

29.43

12,000

32.29

Colton

10,400

32.81

10,400

32.91

Curborough & Elmhurst and Farewell & Chorley

3,100

12.20

3,100

11.98

Drayton Basset

21,629

47.64

21,629

46.81

Edingale

11,000

39.01

11,330

40.41

Elford

11,097

36.15

13,000

42.50

Fradley and Streethay

38,000

28.81

57.872

39.00

Fazeley

57,827

38.78

51,000

36.19

Hammerwich

20,000

14.46

20,000

14.47

Hamstall Ridware

3,250

21.10

3,250

21.59

Harlaston

5,000

26.18

5,200

26.75

Hints and Canwell

5,230

26.68

5,545

28.12

Kings Bromley

12,880

22.92

12,880

22.62

Lichfield

626,900

51,61

628,700

51.61

Longdon

13,650

17.15

13,650

17.13

Mavesyn Ridware

11,950

26.98

14,300

32.00

Shenstone

129,000

35.82

129,000

36.02

Swinfen & Packington

2,000

13.33

2,600

17.74

Wall

4,750

24.11

4,750

23.60

Weeford

1,445

15.21

1,520

16.54

Whittington and Fisherwick

41,960

36.17

42,380

37.23

Wiggington & Hopwas

10,000

21.28

10,000

21.27

Lichfield District Council

480

1,142

£30

£41

Staffordshire County Council

15,379

31,158

£109

£98

Stoke and Staffordshire Fire Authority

Parish councils who receive over £100,000 to deliver local services

Expenditure £’000

Income £’000

Precept £’000

Expenditure £’000

Income £’000

Precept £’000

863

1,677

£5

£4

Burntwood Town Council

265

-14

251

251

–

251

Lichfield City Council

1,779

-1,152

627

1,254

-625

629

Shenstone Parish Council

179

-50

129

129

–

129

Staffordshire Police Authority

19,632

25,865

£73

£54

2009/10 (Last year)

2010/11 (This year)

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Serving you well We know that getting a quick answer is important to you.

That’s why we’re proud that this year we served over 27,000 customers at our reception desk, answered over 150,000 calls, and didn’t kept people waiting for any longer than 20 seconds!

Over 200,000 of you visit our award winning website regularly at www.lichfielddc.gov.uk To report a problem

D /reportit

To give your views

D /voiceit

Want to know more?

Find out more about what we will deliver with our partners next year.

D /strategicplan Find out more about why we’re a top performing council, and download our annual reports.

D /performance

Contact us Visit www.lichfielddc.gov.uk Or, if you’re not online, call our Lichfield Connects team on 01543 308000 Monday to Friday, 8.45am – 5.15pm.

Above: Over 750 people helped celebrate their community as part of lantern parades in north Lichfield & Burntwood. 2008’s north Lichfield event won a prestigious RegenWM award.

Please give us your views on this leaflet We hope you have found this leaflet informative, easy to read, and easy to understand. If you have any comments about how we could improve the leaflet next year, please email nina.dawes@lichfielddc.gov.uk

If you would like this leaflet in another format such as large print, please call 01543 308000.