Precept update following January meeting

Below are the key things the Council discussed when setting the precept:

• The need to meet our legal obligations.
• The need to maintain assets such as Westleigh Play Park, the Old Railway Line and other green spaces so they can continue to be safely used by parishioners. Current requirements are higher due to the lack of upkeep in previous years.
• The need to plan for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). Over the next couple of years, LGR will radically change how services are provided, as both Mid Devon District Council and Devon County Council will be dissolved. For us, this means that facilities such as Burlescombe Play Park are likely to become the Parish Council’s responsibility, and potentially other services such as litter and dog bin emptying. All the advice from local authorities and the Devon Association of Local Councils is that we should plan ahead for this financially, to protect the few facilities we have in the parish.

Having gone through this information, alongside the costs for the year ahead, the Parish Council set the total precept at £42,650. For the full detail behind this figure, please see the budget report on the meeting page.

This means that a Band D household will go from paying around £101.27 to around £124.99 for the year. This works out as an increase of around £1.97 per month. Lower band households will pay less, and higher band households will pay more.

The Parish Council understands that any rise will not be welcomed by residents, but – having discussed all the options at length over the last few months – it’s clear that this small increase is required to effectively maintain the parish facilities and exercise financial responsibility.

Your full Council Tax bill won’t be set until other services (Devon County Council and Mid Devon District Councils, Fire and Police services, etc) decide on their charges for the year. County and District Councils are usually allowed a maximum increase of 5%.

There is support available for people who can’t afford their Council Tax. Find out more on MDDC’s website https://www.middevon.gov.uk/residents/benefits/council-tax-reduction/.

What’s next?

Councillors will continue to work hard to save costs and bring in funding from other sources (such as grants) in the coming year.

We’re also working to establish a group of volunteers who can help with simple jobs to maintain and improve the local area – if you’d be interested in joining this group, please contact cllr.tsara.smith@burlescombeparishcouncil.gov.uk.

We’re also continuing to improve how we communicate with residents, and will soon be setting up an email newsletter to help keep people up to date. To reach new audiences, the Council will print and distribute a postcard with sign-up information and other details on.

Our next Parish Council meeting is at 7pm on Tuesday 17 February 2026 at Westleigh URC Hall. The agenda will be uploaded to our website and displayed in noticeboards in the coming weeks.