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ILKLEY PRECEPT INCREASE OF 39%
After lengthy discussion and much consideration, Ilkley Parish Council has taken the decision to increase the precept for 2017/18 to £252,325.00. A Band D household in Ilkley currently pays £26.00 per year to fund the important and valuable work of the Parish Council. This will rise to £36.00 per year. This equates to £3 per month. So a family of four in one household will pay only 17p per person per week in total.
The Council has taken the difficult decision to make this increase in order to protect Ilkley’s facilities and services from the cuts that have been announced by Bradford Council. Bradford Council are currently proposing to close all public toilets in the town, close the Visitor Information Centre and reduce flower bed planting as well as reducing other services such as street cleansing. As a Council we have rejected these proposals and are doing everything we can to stop these closures.
The Parish Council precept is the only fund that is spent entirely in and for Ilkley and the Parish Council feels that it offers excellent value especially when you consider almost £30 per week is paid in Council Tax directly to Bradford Council by each Band D household. Its fourteen Councillors are all volunteers and do not receive an allowance. The Council is already responsible for the public toilets at White Wells and for Darwin Gardens. We have recently used the precept to fund the employment of a Town Centre Warden who has carried out some great work on our streets to ensure that they stay clean and tidy for residents and visitors alike. The Parish Council also makes many awards to local not-for-profit organisations through its Awards and Projects Committee and holds some fantastic annual community events such as the Christmas Lights switch on. The Parish Council funds the Jubilee Lights and Christmas Lights entirely from the precept too.
By agreeing its budget for 2017-18, the Parish Council will continue to make significant contributions to the life and fabric of our wonderful town.
Councillor Henri Murison told Ilkley Chat that the Parish Council agreed collectively to oppose cuts to public toilets & Ilkley visitor centre and the support needed to protect vulnerable. The Parish Council is seeking an urgent meeting with Susan Hinchcliffe, the leader of Bradford Council or her officers to discuss plans.
What is the precept? It is an amount charged to each property in the town and collected by Bradford Council via the Council Tax. It is used to fund all the activities that the parish council undertakes for the benefit of your community.