Lincolnshire resident to pay an average £2,000-plus in council tax this year: How is your money allocated?

The average Lincolnshire resident will be paying more than £2,000 in council tax this year, but with contributions going towards public services at a county and district council level, as well as funding the police and crime commissioner, how does this get allocated?

Council tax is a way of funding public services through resident contributions, and a progressive system has been in place for a number of years now to ensure those in higher value properties pay more than those closer to the breadline.

However, in times of financial stress for many, the repetitive percentage point increases across county and district level can be quite overwhelming in an ever-demanding world of balancing the books and meeting ends meet.

Every authority increased council tax in Greater Lincolnshire this year, each citing their own reasons but most blamed rising costs, inflation and other financial pressures due to the national and global landscapes.

Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) approved a 4.99% council tax increase for 2024/25, while the Lincolnshire Police & Crime Commissioner went ahead with a 4.45% hike, and districts across the county opted for variations around 3%.

It must be noted that 2% of Lincolnshire County Council’s tax increase is allocated towards adult social care — leaving 2.99% for all other services.

A county council budget requirement of £639.1 million for 2024/25 highlights the importance of council taxation for key public services. Some £25 million will be spent on Lincolnshire Fire & Rescue by LCC over the next year, for example.

Click here to discover how your council tax compares to other districts in Lincolnshire.

North Kesteven District Council had the lowest increase in Lincolnshire at 2.68%, while South Holland District Council’s 3.9% increase was the highest in the county.

Your council tax, at both county and district level, is split 50/50 on the value of your property, and your own personal circumstances.

For instance, the most common property type is Band D — meaning that according to the Valuation Office Agency it was worth between £68,001 and £88,000 in April 1991 — and for Lincolnshire County Council residents that is an annual cost of £1,578.69 in council tax.

However, when filtering in council tax payments for district level, as well as the tax from the Police & Crime Commissioner, this overall cost becomes even higher.

In the City of Lincoln, for example, Band D properties will pay £307.98 for the 24/25 financial year, following the authority’s 2.92% increase.

The same property band is then expected to pay £304.20 for Lincolnshire Police & Crime Commissioner taxes, after a 4.45% hike to that for this year.

Overall, this brings the total, for a Lincoln resident in a Band D property, to £2,190.87 of council tax contributions across the next 12 months.

That works out at around 72% of the overall tax bill being paid to Lincolnshire County Council, while City of Lincoln Council takes 14% and the local Police & Crime Commissioner collects just shy of 14%.

The gap between the cheapest and most expensive property bands also reflects a much larger contribution towards council taxes in Lincolnshire.

Using Boston Borough Council rates as an example, residents in Band A properties will pay £143.44 for district council tax contributions in 24/25, while Band H properties will pay £430.31 — basically over three times more.

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Filtering in Lincolnshire County Council’s tax brackets for this, Band A properties will contribute £1,052.46 and Band H residents will pay £3,157.38 — another 200% difference.

Finally, Band A properties will pay £202.80 in Lincolnshire Police & Crime Commissioner contributions, and £608.40 will be paid by Band H properties — completing a hat-trick of 200% increases from cheapest to most expensive property bands.

The total figure for this underlines the stark contrast in resident contribution based on their property values. Band H properties in Boston will be expected to pay £4,196.09 in council tax this year, compared to £1,398.70 for Band A properties.

These findings present a theory and discussion point as old as time itself — what is the most responsible and respectable amount people can expect to pay for quality public services such as highways, education and transport?

Those in higher tax brackets find themselves paying 200% more than fellow residents in lower-valued property bands, and with almost 75% of the council tax going to Lincolnshire County Council, just how much of that funding do they see in their local hamlets, villages, parishes and communities?