Croydon, Thurrock and Slough to raise council tax threshold

The government has given Croydon Council permission to increase council tax by an additional 10 per cent on top of the five per cent already permitted without referendum.

Thurrock and Slough Councils have also been permitted to raise council tax by an additional five per cent.

In a written statement to parliament, Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said:

“Following significant failures in their local leadership, governance and financial management, the government received requests from Thurrock, Croydon and Slough for the flexibility to increase their Council Tax by an additional amount, to provide extra funding to support their financial recovery.

“This is on top of the significant additional support government has already granted through the Exceptional Financial Support process. Given the exceptional circumstances of these councils, including unprecedented financial deficits driven by poor decision-making in the past and the need for ongoing government intervention to drive their improvement and recovery, the government has decided not to oppose the requests.”

The news comes as the The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities issued its financial settlement (2023/24) for local authorities across England.

In November last year, Croydon, which already has of the biggest council tax bills in London, issued its third section 114 notice in two years.