Council tax

Participants were asked for their view on council tax options for 2025/26, the options were:

Option 1: Freeze council tax for a year
Option 2: Increase council tax by an amount just under the government’s set referendum limit of 3%, which is an increase of just over 5p a week for an average band D household.
Option 3: If there is flexibility to do so, would you agree to an increase of up to £5 (5.5% increase) a year on an average band D household, which is a weekly increase of just over 9p?
Option 4: I would like to specify how much more I would be willing to pay.

Overall, there was widespread support for a modest increase in council tax, with over two thirds (72%) of respondents agreeing to an uplift. Looking at this in more detail, 47.2% of respondents selected option 3 (an increase of up to £5 per year), and 24.8% supported the increase set out in option 2. Of the remainder, 21.1% wanted council tax frozen, while 6.9% supported offering an alternative amount (see Graph 4).

Among the 6.9% of respondents who selected option 4, they were asked a follow up question about what increase in council tax they would you be prepared to pay in 2025/26? To give context, it was explained that each 1% increase in a Council Tax Band D household is just under 2p per week. Of the 77 responses received, 63.6% of respondents chose the option 'Over 3% but less than 5.5%', while 36.4% of respondents selected 'Over 5%' (see Graph 5).