THE average council tax bill in Wychavon could rise by an extra £80 from March according to the latest figures.

Wychavon District Council has not yet revealed whether it plans to increase its share of council tax in the next financial year after freezing its share of the bill for the fifth time in a row last year.

If district bosses decided to increase the council’s share of the bill by two per cent – the maximum allowed without having to hold a referendum – then the bill for an average ‘band D’ household would rise by around £2.50 to £122.50 a year.

Worcestershire County Council has proposed a rise of almost five per cent rise in its council tax share – with some of the money ring-fenced to pay for adult social care – which would see its slice rise by almost £70 for ‘band D’ households.

This would push total bills for ‘band D’ homes – including the police precept, both district and county councils, and the region’s fire service precept which usually rises yearly by between £1.50 and £2 – to nearly £1,940 or roughly £162 a month.

Budget papers reveal the government has agreed to give the county an extra £26m in funding next year plus an extra £19.5m for adult and children’s social care.

Council bosses said £22m would have to be cut – or ‘saved’ – from next year’s budget and a further £45m would have to be slashed from the budget in the following three years.

West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion has already revealed in his budget plans that he will be asking the average taxpayer in Worcestershire to pay almost £10 more next year towards the cost of policing.

The force’s share from the average band D household in the county will rise by £9.84 to £259.50 a year under the plans with the almost four per cent increase coming 12 months on from another four per cent increase.