THE Council Tax bill for a Band D property in Richmond borough is to rise above £2,000 for the first time.

The figure is set to rise by a below inflation rate of 3.21% - £62.87 a year – according to a report due to go before Council chiefs this week.

It will take the annual tax for a Band D property up from £1,958.66 in 2021-21 to £2,021.53 from April 1, 2022.

The element of the charge that is raised by Richmond Council is rising by just 1.94% - with 1% of this associated with extra funding for Adult Social Care.

There has been a much bigger percentage increase in that part of the Council Tax that goes to the Greater London Authority and to fund the Police, Transport for London and the Fire Brigade.

This element of the annual bill for a Band D property is rising by 8.78% - £31.93 – taking it up to £395.59.

Some £10 of the increase relates to the Metropolitan Police, which is recruiting officers, and £20 for Transport for London, which is under pressure to rebuild its finances following the impact of the pandemic.

The increases in Council Tax come against a background of figures showing Richmond has 'suffered an overall loss of general Government support … of around £40m in cash terms since 2010 (in real terms this would be higher)'.

Council Tax classifications are based on an assessment of property values dating back to 1991, when a Band D property was assessed as being worth between £68,001 and £88,000.

Critics say the classification system is flawed, out of date and full of anomalies - meaning that near identical homes in the same street can be in different Bands so that in some cases occupants are paying £900 a year more than their neighbours.

The Council Tax proposals, which will have to be ratified by the full Council, are included in a report to the Finance, Police and Resources Committee on February 24.

They put Council Tax at £4,043.06 for the most expensive Band H properties; £3,369.22 for Band G; £2,919.99 for Band F; £2,470.76 for Band E; £2,021.53 for Band D; £1,796.92 for Band C; £1,572.30 for Band B; and £1,347.69 for Band A.

Richmond borough recently came top of a number of health and lifestyle measures, including a UK happiness index[.i], performing best across 350 local authority areas for children's health and education, male life expectancy and economic productivity.

Last month it was suggested [L]https://teddington.nub.news/n/teddington-borough-named-as-blueprint-for-39levelled-up39-britain[l+]the area could set a blueprint for the north of England under the government's 'levelling up' agenda.

The leader of Richmond's Lib-Dem Council, Cllr Gareth Roberts, celebrated the area's but success, but insisted it was driven by the efforts of local people, rather than owing anything to Westminster.

He said: "It's always nice to see Richmond upon Thames acknowledged as a wonderful place to live, work, go to school and indeed spend a day out.

"It's the people who make it - the residents, the local businesses, the incredible voluntary sector, teachers, our community police officers, our frontline workers - the list is long."

He added: "As for being held up as an exemplar of what could be achieved through levelling-up, well Richmond has historically had relatively poor investment from central government for decades.

"What we have achieved comes from the hard work of the people who live here and their willingness to support the council, through Council Tax and Business Rates, in delivering the high-quality services which make this borough one of the best in the country."