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Council tax - overview

Council tax leaflet 2008/09 1.9mb

Salisbury District Council collects council tax on behalf of a number of local authorities:

• Wiltshire County Council,
• Wiltshire Police,
• Wiltshire Fire and Rescue,
• Salisbury District Council,
• town councils, and
• parish councils.

Salisbury District Council's share of council tax is less than 10%. This is used to fund all district council services.

What Salisbury district council services do I get for my council tax?

The less than 10% of the council tax that is kept by Salisbury District Council funds all district council services. As an example, a Band D tax payer in for the year 2008/2009 will pay £128.32 - or just £2.47 a week This pays for us to deliver a wide range of very visible and not-so-visible services, including:

• housing,
• planning,
• community safety,
• arts, leisure and tourism,
• Shopmobility, and
• customer services.

How does Salisbury district's council tax compare to other districts?

Council tax in south Wiltshire is lower than in most other districts.Salisbury District Council is currently in the top quarter for all district councils for the lowest council tax.

Why are there rises in council tax?

Generally, council tax rises every year. This is because the cost to the various authorities of delivering their services usually rises. This may be due to reasons such as:

• inflation,
• increases in salaries, and
• increases in pension contributions.

How do I know I am getting value for money from my district council?

Achieving value for money is at the heart of everything we do. We aim to keep council tax and spending down, while achieving high levels of performance and satisfaction.

Since 2002/03, the average Band D council tax bill in Salisbury district has been kept among the lowest 25 per cent in the country. We’ve made lower-than-average increases compared with other district councils, and we aim to keep our share of your annual council tax bill (just over 9 per cent of the total) increases to no more than £6 per year.

At the same time, independent reports have shown we are performing well and keeping our customers satisfied:

• A major government inspection in 2004, the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) found our service delivery costs compare favorably to others: “Salisbury has levels of council tax in the lowest 25 per cent of district councils, but is achieving quality in its priority areas”;
• The latest Audit Commission Annual Use of Resources Audit, which looks at how the council manages its finances to provide services and support its priorities while giving value for money, found the council to be performing well. It said we provide good value for money, scoring a consistent 3 out of a possible 4 across all areas covered by the assessment. It also confirmed that the council continues to offer good value for money and comparatively low levels of council tax;
• Our Best Value General Household Survey 2006/07, conducted by CWA Consultancy Ltd, found us in the best ten councils nationally for customer satisfaction and 13 per cent higher than the national average.

What does the council do to keep council tax low?

To maintain our position as a high performing, low cost council we have consistently demonstrated a sound track record in delivering efficiencies. Our efficiency programme aims beyond the current targets set by the government.

We look for genuine savings from all services, but only reinvest into priority areas. The council has shifted resources from non-priority to priority areas over a number of years, for example significantly increasing resources for affordable housing assistance and waste management over the past five years.

Looking ahead, we’ll be working with our colleagues and partners countywide to ensure you continue to receive excellent customer service and value for money services during the transition to one council, and to enshrine value for money in the vision and values of the new unitary authority.

As resources are limited we will look to make sure that every penny works as hard as it can. We will be embracing the idea of shared services, bringing together functions such as finance and HR from all across the county in one place.