Stratford-on-Avon District Council is facing some tough decisions as it prepares its medium term budget for 2009/10 and beyond during this economic uncertainty.
Standing at £123 in 2008/09, the District Councils Band D Council Tax is among the lowest in England (Stratford-on-Avon District Council ranks 28th lowest amongst 238 district councils). The Council has managed to keep its tax low, partly due to income derived from planning application fees, property searches, parking charges and interest on investments. The first three have been hit hard as a result of the economic downturn, and the recent interest rates reductions have reduced projected income by four fifths.
Resources portfolio holder Councillor Tony Dixon says We understand the importance of controlling our costs so that our council tax remains amongst the lowest. At a time like this our residents will more than ever be seeking reassurance that they are getting excellent value for money from their Council.
Councillor Dixon has been leading a Budget Working Group which over the last 3 months has reviewed spending across all areas of the Council. The Group has compared Stratfords performance in terms of both cost and quality against best in class councils nationally. Councillor Dixon adds This has been a really useful exercise. We have identified several specific areas of service where innovative an approaches adopted by another council could be replicated here at Stratford.
Councillor Les Topham, Leader of the Council, confirmed that all areas of service are under review. He says Through this exercise it has become very apparent that we need to review our corporate strategy and priorities as interest rates plummet. To mitigate the impact on our residents every service is being scrutinised for further efficiencies"
