Archive for year: 2024

Are you a community-minded, independent, thoughtful person? Do you care about your village, your neighbours and your environment? If so, Wingfield Parish Council needs you!

Five residents already support the local community as parish councillors, but one more person is needed to bring Wingfield Parish Council to its full complement of six councillors.

Parish Councils are part of grassroots democracy and contribute to the well-being and cohesion of neighbourhoods by:

• Representing the local community, giving residents a voice in local decision making and forming a bridge between the community and local government
• Bringing people together by enabling residents to get involved, express their opinions and contribute, often by organising events, initiatives and projects
• Playing a role in the planning and development process by reviewing and commenting on applications so they align with the needs of the local community
• Raising funds through Council Tax Precepts, managing budgets and allocating resources to local projects and initiatives

Contact the Parish Clerk – clerk@wingfieldparishcouncil.gov.uk or 07841 024739 – for an informal chat about the responsibilities and commitment (not huge) and the satisfaction (immense) of serving your community.

When receiving their Council Tax bills, residents will notice that there is an amount listed against Wingfield Parish Council. This is the parish precept, and it’s the tax that parish council’s charge their local electors to meet their budget requirements.

Wingfield Precept for 2024/25

Having considered funds held, likely budget requirements and the tax base for 24/25, as well as taking into account challenging economic times, Wingfield Councillors agreed to lower the total precept to £16,000 from £16,841 in 2023/24. This means a small decrease in the precept paid by residents. For example, the current Band D charge will decrease from £105.54/year to £96.47/year. This level of precept enables the Parish Council to cover its proposed running costs and the costs of projects for 2024/25, whilst maintaining a reasonable level of funds should any unexpected costs need to be covered.

How is the Precept calculated?

Each parish council forecasts how much money it is going to need in the following year, taking into account money held and any other likely income (most parish councils have very little or no other income). This is then divided by the number of properties in the parish that fall into Band D Council Tax band. This figure is adjusted to take account of such things as exempt properties and planned new houses to get the precept each Council Tax payer in the parish will contribute.

How does Wingfield Parish Council work out it’s precept requirements?

Towards the end of the calendar year, the Clerk prepares a draft budget for the next financial year, that will start the following April. This includes everyday running costs (administration, hall hire, bin emptying etc.) and estimated costs of projects that the Parish Council is hoping to undertake in the year ahead. Parish Councillors finalise the budget at the November Parish Council meeting. Once the budget has been agreed, councillors can then consider how much money they need to raise to meet the projected costs. Current funds held will also be considered at this point. Parish Councils are advised to hold between 3-12 months expenditure in the bank, although this can vary for specific reasons, perhaps if a council is building up funds to undertake a big project.

The final element to consider is the tax base figure, provided by Wiltshire Council. This changes slightly every year according to the number of people living in the parish.

Once councillors have the budget figures, the amount of money held in accounts and the tax base, they can decide on an appropriate level at which to set the next year’s precept.