Costs set to rise as council plugs budget hole

The council plans to increase council tax

People are set to pay more for services as a Kent local authority seeks to plug a multi-million-pound budget shortfall.

Medway Council plans to increase council tax and a range of charges from April, including parking and sports centre memberships.

Council leader Vince Maple said the local authority "had to deal with a really challenging financial set of circumstances".

"These are difficult choices, not ones we take lightly," he added.

"But I've got a responsibility to deliver a balanced budget and to deliver the very best services that we can within a financially responsible approach."

The local authority has ruled out making further cuts to services, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

What costs are going up?

Council tax will be hiked by 4.99% - the maximum amount without requiring a referendum.

Medway Council had asked the government for another 5% increase to council tax on top, though this request was rejected.

Parking costs across Medway are due to go up by 60p, both for on-street and off-street.

That means a one to two-hour stay will cost £2.90 rather than £2.30, for example.

Sports centre memberships will also increase, with a premier-plus monthly fee for Cozenton Park in Rainham rising from £55.95 to £60.40.

The family premier-plus monthly membership will increase from £115 to £124.20.

The council initially believed it would require £26.2m in exceptional financial support (EFS) from the government to make up for it budget shortfall in the next financial year.

However, this figure has been revised down to £18.5m.

Medway Council said it intends to save money by using AI to reduce time-consuming assessment work for social care and other services to speed up processing and administration.

Whether council buildings can be better utilised or sold will also be investigated, it added.