TORRIDGE District Council has agreed to increase council tax by 3.36% — equating to £5 per year on an average Band D property.

This rise of 10p per household per week was agreed upon at the council’s full meeting on Monday, February 27.

After government funding reductions of £500,000 in 2017/18 and other cost pressures, Torridge District Council has a £1-million budget gap left for 2017/18.

The council will continue to reshape the way it will be working into the future, as evidenced in the current waste review recommendations. The council will also draw on reserves.

The council has said that this council tax rise ‘has been necessary’ to achieve the balanced budget and effectively manage the impact of significant reductions in grants from central government.

Torridge District Council retains 9% of the council tax it collects to fund local services, with the remaining 91% being collected on behalf of Devon County Council, Devon and Cornwall Police, Devon and Somerset Fire authority and town and parish councils.

As these other authorities are raising their council tax, the overall increase for an average Band D property in Torridge will be 4.45% — this is an increase of £73.84, with £60.30 of the total increase being levied by Devon County Council.

Deputy leader of Torridge District Council, Cllr James Morrish, said: “Once again Torridge have tried to limit the burden on out council tax payers by not increasing the amounts for next year beyond that which is necessary to protect and maintain effective front line services, those which we know are essential to Torridge residents.

“The work continues on bringing even greater customer focus to what we do through out transformation programme, which will be concerned with rationalising the way in which services are delivered by introducing locality officers, reducing the number of buildings we occupy, and smarter working.”