DUNSTABLIANS will not have to dig deeper in their pockets to pay for town council services in the next financial year.
For there will be no rise in the amount they hand out for Dunstable Town Council’s share of the council tax bill.
The town council has set its 2011/12 budget based on no increase for average band D homes in its portion of the council tax.
Dunstable householders in band D properties will pay £139.65 for town council services in 2011/12, the same sum levied in the current financial year.
Councillor Sally Newton, chairman of the finance and general purposes committee, told the full council: “I am particularly pleased that the council has achieved this with little impact on services to be delivered.”
But she sounded a note of caution, saying that holding down the council tax was largely made possible because staff received no pay award for two years running.
“It is unlikely that such a situation is sustainable in the future,” she said.
Dunstable householders pay £2.69 a week for town council services, she said.
She stressed: “I believe that we can demonstrate tremendous value for this charge.”
The town council’s helping from the overall council tax bill will tot up to £1,792,827.
Mrs Newton was pleased that the budget had been set with no reliance on using the general reserve.
She spoke of how 2010 marked the council’s 25th anniversary, and said the local authority had grown into a major influence in the town.
Mrs Newton talked of the council’s achievements in the past year, including creating a corporate plan, gaining a prestigious Green Flag Award for Grove House Gardens, launching the new Peter Newton Pavilion and earning success in the Anglia In Bloom competition.
The town not only gained a gold medal in the floral contest but also scooped the Best New Entry prize.
Floral displays in the High Street and on The Square were among six nominations for the Best Local Authority Floral Display. And Queensbury School earned the Best Young Persons’ Project title.
Mrs Newton said that 2011/12 would be another exciting year for the council, with challenges including taking on the running of the Creasey Park Community Football Hub.
She believed that the council was in a good position to show that it could deal with a wider range of services.
“I hope we are able to secure the running of the market next year,” she said.
Councillor Julian Murray expressed concern about some rising charges relating to Dunstable Cemetery and to allotments.