THE average council tax rate in Worcestershire is among one of the lowest in the country according to the latest figures.

The average council tax contribution to pay Worcestershire County Council’s services is £1,344 – which is the 33rd lowest in the UK.

Wychavon, which includes Evesham, Pershore and Droitwich, has the lowest average council tax in Worcestershire with residents expected to pay £1,843 a year for a band D property – the 55th lowest in the country.

The district council agreed to freeze its share of council tax for the fourth year in a row this year.

The most expensive average council tax payment in the county is in Wyre Forest at £1,939 – which also saw the biggest year-on-year rise compared to 2020/21 at just over three per cent.

Closely behind Wychavon is Worcester with an average council tax charge of £1,872 – which includes money for district and county council services as well as precepts for West Mercia Police and Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service.

The average band D payment in Worcester means residents pay the 75th lowest council tax rate among the country’s 296 district and unitary authorities for the current financial year 2021/22.

The third lowest council tax in the county is Malvern Hills where the average band D payment is £1,913 according to figures provided by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Seven pounds higher than Malvern Hills is Redditch which has the fourth highest average council tax payment in Worcestershire at £1,921.

Of the county’s six districts, Bromsgrove has the fifth highest average payment with band D taxpayers handing over £1,933 a year.

For each pound given to Wychavon by council taxpayers, the majority goes to Worcestershire County Council to pay for services such as adult and children’s social care, roads, libraries and waste disposal.

West Mercia’s Police and Commissioner receives 13p from every pound in Wychavon to pay for policing in the region.

The district council itself keeps just six pence with five pence going to Herefordshire and Worcestershire Fire and Rescue Service.

Three pence from every pound in Wychavon council tax money goes to parish and town councils.