Essex Council announces budget approval at meeting

A £20 million investment has already been made available to help families. This includes directly supporting financial wellbeing and helping with summer childcare.

Kevin Bentley, leader of Essex Council said: “I have been very clear throughout the last seven months as Leader that my aim is to help everyone in Essex to reach for the stars. I reiterated this in our plan for how we will renew the county – Everyone’s Essex – and I intend to deliver on that.

“Councils don’t have their own money; they are responsible for investing resident’s money and this means that no one should be left behind, whoever they are and wherever they live in Essex.”

Also confirmed at the meeting was the proposed change in Council Tax charges for residents over the next financial year. This year, council tax will rise by 4.49 per cent, of which 2.5 per cent relates solely to funding for adult social care.

However, following the government’s recent announcement, residents living in properties in council tax bands A to D amounting to 75 per cent of Essex households will receive a £150 Council Tax rebate to help them with escalating energy costs. This is in addition to the £200 credit from the government for energy bills.

Chris Whitbread, Essex councillor responsible for finance said: “Our track record of excellent financial management means we have the foundation and budget plans that not only enable us to address the here and now, but also to invest in the future of Essex.

“Although we welcome the actions of government in the past week to address these costs, we have had no other choice but to increase Council Tax to ensure we can continue to meet the needs of some of our most vulnerable residents.

“I am pleased to announce a budget today that will enable us to continue helping people to recover from the pandemic, protect the most vulnerable in our communities and invest in our plans for Everyone’s Essex.”