Council receives newsletter grant

Towards the end of 2006, the Parish Council applied for a grant that would enable it to make some improvements to the Bromley Bulletin.

As a result of this the Council has been awarded a grant of over £1100 pounds to enable the purchase of an A3 laser printer. The main improvements this will bring are the ability to include photographs and to change the format to a folded A4 presentation.

The grant was awarded from funds provided by central government and administered in our county by the Staffordshire Parish Councils’ Association. These funds are only available to the still relatively small number of Councils that have met the “Quality Council” benchmark criteria. Abbots Bromley Parish Council is one of the handful of Councils in Staffordshire that has achieved that distinction.

The Bromley Bulletin is published four times a year and is the main means by which the Council is able to provide information for local people. Past issues are available on-line in the Parish Council section of these web pages. The next issue, due in February 2007, will be in the new format.

Parish Council sets budget for next year

When the Council met to consider the budget for 2007/2008, they had to allow for the possible cost of an election in May 2007. Since the costs will only be incurred if there is a poll, and the Returning Officer is currently unable to predict the exact cost, a provision for around half part of the likely cost has been included in the precept (Council Tax) and the balance will be taken from reserves. This approach has enabled the Council to keep the cost of the increase to less than 5%.

The precept for 2007/2008 will be £19,500 compared to £18,800 in the current year. Changes in the number of taxable properties in the parish also affect the cost to individual tax payers.

As the Parish Council element of Council Tax (which also includes Borough and County COuncils, Fire Service and Police) is typically around 2% of the total, this change is very minor in overall effect.

For a Band D Council Tax payer, the Parish Council rate for next year will equate to 7p a day.