HEREFORDSHIRE Council chiefs are set to propose a 4.99 per cent tax rise at the next week’s Cabinet meeting, writes Will Luker.

The draft budget will be considered subject to approval by Cabinet on Monday January 13, before going to the council’s scrutiny committee.

The total draft revenue budget proposed for 2025/26 will be £232million, but in order to balance the books council tax will go up along with £6.9million in savings across council services.

A reduction in funding comes against a backdrop of increasing demands for services such as child and adult social care.

The council say that similar to other councils across the UK, changes to funding arrangements has reduced the money it receives from central government, including the removal of a grant to rural services.

Leader of Herefordshire Council, Councillor Jonathan Lester said the decision to propose an increase in council tax has been very difficult. He said: “This proposed budget does not shy away from the significant challenges handed to us by inflation, increasing demand for services, a reduction in government funding or the changes to national insurance.

“Instead, it harnesses our previous prudent and strong financial management to preserve and protect the council’s financial resilience and sustainability at a time when other councils are having to cut services and investment.

“We took some extremely difficult decisions last year, making wide-ranging savings across all council service areas, which has left us in a more robust financial position enabling us to address the extra pressures on services and the reduction of government support.

“Alongside the savings last year we also committed to investing more than £2.5million to support local priorities.

“We will continue to campaign hard for the government to rethink its decision to get rid of the rural services grant before the final financial settlement is announced in January.”