COUNCIL tax rates for those living in the Stroud district have now been set.

Before adding the varying charge that comes from individual parish councils, the average Band D household will pay £1,485.16.

The rates, which were agreed at the budget meeting of Stroud District Council, will come into play at the beginning of the financial year on April 1.

The amount of council tax you pay is a combination of charges levied by Gloucestershire County Council, Stroud District Council, the Police and Crime Commissioner and parish councils, which all submit the amount required for their budget.

GCC, SDC and the PCC have not increased their portion of the council tax bill this year, leaving parish councils as the only variable.

Dursley Town Council’s budget for this year is £259,627. Those living in the Dursley ward will see a small rise, with the average household paying a total of £1,608.55, a 0.6 per cent increase on last year’s £1,598.67.

DTC clerk Helen Bojaniwska said: “The money will go towards building on the improvements to green spaces in our town, including the new play area on the Rec that will be open this weekend.

“The council also has plans in 2015 to purchase new land for allotments and to take over responsibility of Highfields Playing Field and Union Street Green.

“The council is continuing to work on a Neighbourhood Development Plan for Dursley, which will focus on shaping new development in the town, where it should go and what it should look like.”

A minor rise for Cam tax payers will see Band D residents paying a total of £1,548.95 instead of last year’s £1,547.40, a 0.1 per cent change. Their budget for the year is £177,000.

Cam clerk Sue Hanman said: “The increase is a result of elections cost provision, additional improvements to recreational facilities and inflation, reduced by some use of reserves and increased income and external funding.”

Council tax in Wotton-under-Edge will be slightly higher to contribute to their budget of £264,373 – shifting from £1617.57 for a Band D household last year to £1618.61 this year, an increase of around 0.06 per cent.

The council in Wotton has said the small rise is mainly due to the 25 per cent reduction in the government precept subsidy grant.

Berkeley is one of the few parishes to be paying less this year. The budget stays the same but the number of houses has increased so each individual Band D resident will pay £1,606.80, a slight drop from last year’s £1,608.96 and a fall of around 0.1 per cent.

In this year’s list of council tax rates Ham and Stone Burial Area had a section and precept of its very own with a budget of £320.

The clerk of Ham and Stone Council explained that, as people in Ham are buried in Berkeley, this money goes to the burial committee there to assist with maintenance and general upkeep.

To find out more about council tax visit www.stroud.gov.uk