Another Council Tax

FREEZE Derbyshire Dales households

still pay on average about

50p a day

for District Council services

2013-14

YOUR SERVICES: Details inside

T his leaflet includes a list of some of the services provided for you by Derbyshire Dales District Council.

About one third of the money for these services comes from central Government – the rest is collected through fees and charg-es and through Council Tax, which we have once again frozen in 2013/14 at last year’s level.

So a ‘Band D’ household’s Council Tax bill in 2013/14 for Derbyshire Dales District Council services is again £189.66, or only £3.65 per household per week - approximate-ly 50p per day.

As Derbyshire’s most consistent top-performing local authority, we have pledged to make no reduction in services in the coming year, despite having to continue to make savings - an additional £1.2 million by 2015.

In the past 10 years we have made efficiency savings of well over £4 million, but another cut in Government grant in 2013/14 means more savings have to be made through measures includ-ing reducing employee costs, sharing services and continuing a comprehensive review of spending across all services.

Derbyshire Dales District Council receives the lowest grant of any council in the county, but continues to work hard to try to maintain your efficient, value for money services.

GET YOUR HANDS ON OUR SERVICES

You can pay your Council Tax online at

www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/pay

�� Front page photos (clockwise from top left): Our police partnership SmartWater crime prevention campaign in Tansley; one of our free Walking for Health Groups sets out from

Calver; new play equipment is on its way to our Bakewell Park and pictured are local mum Abby Lewis and daughter Amberley; teenagers at a Dales Apprentice event in Matlock

Affordable homes – More than 1,000 new homes enabled by Derbyshire Dales District Council since 2002. Recent housing statistics reveal we continue to perform better in this area than most other local authorities, securing over

£51 million in new housing investment.

Safe communities - latest Home Office figures reveal that crime in the Derbyshire Dales is lower than almost anywhere

in England, and still getting lower.

Clean streets – 99% of Dales streets are clean.

Waste collection and recycling – Derbyshire Dales residents are now recycling more at home than ever before thanks to a new service that started last autumn, saving

Council Tax payers £385,000 a year.

Active, healthy communities – The Derbyshire Dales is the

fifth healthiest place to live in the whole of the UK.

Leisure centres and sports activities – Arc Leisure Matlock is a fabulous success, nearing half a million visits. Attendance at our 4 leisure centres

increased 5% in the past year.

Parks, play areas and skate parks - We recorded a fifth consecutive Green Flag Award for our Hall Leys Park in Matlock and run parks throughout the Dales, including Ash-

bourne and Bakewell.

Derbyshire County Council

District

Council

Police

Fire

Parish

D erbyshire Dales District Council collects Council Tax from you - but we only spend 12% of it. The majority (around 70%) goes direct to Derbyshire County Council. Here’s the breakdown:

♦ Derbyshire County Council 70%

♦ Derbyshire Police & Crime Commissioner 11%

♦ Derbyshire Fire & Rescue 4%

♦ Town or Parish Council where you live 3%

♦ Derbyshire Dales District Council 12%

I n addition to affordable homes, business support, safe communities, clean streets, waste collection and recycling, leisure centres, parks and play areas, Derbyshire Dales District Council also provides:

♦ Car parks – including residents’ free parking concessions and free parking in December

♦ Tough action on environmental crime

♦ Security equipment for burglary victims

♦ Food, health and safety inspectors

♦ Food hygiene ratings for local food businesses

♦ Dales events – such as Matlock Bath Illuminations

♦ Planning and building control

♦ Housing advice and benefits

♦ Markets – we run stall markets in your towns and our award-winning Agricultural Business Centre in Bakewell hosts one of the country’s biggest Farmers’ Markets

♦ Toilets – Refurbished throughout the Dales

♦ Running elections – general, European and local

♦ Online services – from paying bills to reporting fly tipping

Pay online: www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/pay

We have asked local people and businesses to name their top priorities. You told us loud and clear you want:

♦ Housing that meets local needs

♦ A clean and prosperous Dales

♦ Safe and healthy communities

D erbyshire Dales District Council’s responses to these tough economic times include:

♦ Free business advice - �.Derbyshire Dales Business Advice was launched at the

end of 2011, and extended at least to March 2014 �.Derbyshire Dales Business Advice has supported 208

businesses and helped create 95 jobs

♦ Invoice payments – the District Council pays invoices as quick-ly as it can (10 days on average)

♦ Producing a 'How to do business with the council' guide to help smaller businesses to trade with us

♦ Business Rates – the District Council has information on small business rate relief, and is encouraging local firms to apply

♦ A ‘Love Your Market’ campaign - promoting stall markets in our towns

♦ Running the Bakewell Agricultural Business Centre, which is the hub of the Peak District economy

♦ Helping promote tourism to the Dales, which contributes £300

million and supports thousands of local jobs

Exempt Dwellings

C ouncil Tax is a locally set tax that is charged on domestic properties which helps to pay for the services provided by all the local

authorities in the area.

These include Derbyshire Dales District Council, Derbyshire County Council, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Derbyshire, Derbyshire Fire Authority and the Town or Parish Council where you live.

There are rules for who is liable to pay the Coun-cil Tax. In general, where a dwelling is occupied, the owners (if it is owner-occupied) or tenants (if it is rented) will be liable, provided they are aged 18 or over. Only people aged 18 or over are classed as residents of a dwelling.

Most dwellings are subject to the Council Tax. There is one bill per dwelling, whether it is a house, bungalow, flat, maisonette, mobile home or houseboat, and whether it is owned or rented. Each dwell-ing has been allocated to one of eight bands according to its open market capital value at 1st April 1991.

Further information about Council Tax, including financial infor-mation relating to the amount of Council Tax set by the District Council and other relevant authorities and bodies, is available online at www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/counciltax (a hard copy of the financial information will be sent free of charge on request).

Some dwellings are exempt from Council Tax. Here are examples of some of the classes of exempt property (this is not the complete list).

A dwelling that is unoccupied may be exempt from Council Tax if:

♦ the previous occupier now lives in a nursing home, care home or hospital

♦ the previous occupier has moved to give or receive personal care

♦ the previous occupier is in detention

♦ it has been repossessed under a mortgage

♦ the previous occupier is deceased (exempt for up to 6 months after probate is granted)

♦ it cannot be let separately from a main dwelling (e.g. granny flats)

A dwelling that is occupied may be exempt from Council Tax if:

♦ all the residents are students

♦ all the residents are severely mentally impaired

♦ all the residents are under 18 years old

♦ it is an annexe that is occupied by an elderly or disabled relative of the occupier of the main dwelling

Full details of all exempt classes are available online at

www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/counciltax

Discounts

For Council Tax purposes, a person is classed as a resident of a dwelling if they are aged 18 or over and have their main residence in that dwelling. The full Council Tax bill assumes a dwelling has two or more residents. If there is only one resident, the Council Tax bill will

be reduced by 25%.

People who fall into certain groups are disregarded as residents when working out entitlement to a discount (i.e. they are not counted as residents). Examples of disregarded persons include students and

the severely mentally impaired.

From April 2013, where a property is not occupied as anyone’s

main residence a discount may only be given in these circumstances:

♦ if the property is substantially unfurnished, a 100% discount may

apply for the first 3 months (no discount applies after this period)

♦ if the property is substantially unfurnished and either it requires (or is undergoing) major repairs work to render it habitable, or it is undergoing structural alterations, then a 100% discount will be allowed for the first 12 months it is in that state (no discount

applies after this period).

♦ if the property is a second home that is specifically required for job related purposes, a 50% discount may apply. No discount will

apply to other second homes.

The District Council does have a general discretion to award discounts if there are particularly good reasons for doing so and no statutory discount or exemption can be granted. Such cases could possibly include where a property remains furnished after a fire or flooding but the property is uninhabitable and it would be unreasona-

ble to continue to charge full Council Tax.

If your bill indicates that a discount has been allowed, you must tell the Revenues Section within 21 days of any change of circumstances which affects your entitlement. If you fail to do so you may be

required to pay a fixed penalty.

Full details of all the discounts (including all the disregarded

groups) are available online at:

www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/counciltax

Pay online www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/pay

Self Service

Customers can log on to our secure website at www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/selfservice to view details of their Council Tax account, Business Rates account or Benefit claim. Landlords who receive Benefit payments direct will also be able to use this system to view payments and letters we have sent to them. To access the system you will require a Personal Identification Number (PIN). If you wish to use this service please contact the Revenues Section on 01629 761222 (revenues@derbyshiredales.gov.uk) or Benefits on 01629 761188 (benefits@derbyshiredales.gov.uk) to request a PIN. This will be sent to you through the post along with further details.

Appeals

Your Council Tax bill states which band applies to your dwelling. If you think your property is in the wrong valuation band you may appeal to the Valuation Office Agency, Ground Floor, Ferrers House, Castle Meadow Road, Nottingham NG2 1AB (tel: 03000 501 501 or email: cteast@voa.gsi.gov.uk).

You may also appeal if you consider that you are not liable to pay Council Tax, for example, because you are not the resident or own-er, or because your property is exempt; or that we have made a mistake in calculating your bill. If you wish to appeal on these grounds you must first notify the District Council in writing so that we have the opportunity to reconsider the case.

Making an appeal does not allow you to withhold payment of tax owing in the meantime. If your appeal is successful you will be entitled to a refund of any overpaid Council Tax.

Further details of the appeal procedure (including the role of Valu-at ion Tr ibuna ls ) can be ob ta ined on l ine a t www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/counciltax

People with disabilities

If you, or someone who lives with you, need a room, or an extra bathroom or kitchen, or extra space in your property to meet special needs arising from a disability, you may be entitled to a reduced Council Tax bill. Further information is available online at www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/counciltax

Revenues enquiries: 01629 761222

Do it online: www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk

Council Tax Support, Housing Benefit and Local Housing Allowance

If you are on a low income you may be able to get help with paying your Council Tax. If you live in a rented property you may also qualify for Housing Benefit or Local Housing Allowance to help you pay your rent.

From April 2013 Council Tax Support replaces Council Tax Bene-fit. The amount of support is calculated in the same way as it was for Council Tax Benefit except that for working age claimants, the amount of support will be reduced by 8.5%.

The amount of help you get will depend on the people who live with you, your income, savings and the Council Tax for your property. You must still pay your Counci Tax and rent while you are waiting to hear about your claim. For more information or to request a claim form please contact the Benefits Section or go online to www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/benefits (the website includes a benefit calculator and electronic claim that allows claims to be made online).

Fraud is the unacceptable face of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support that we are working hard to reduce. If you think you can help us stop fraud please ring the hotline on (01629) 761330.

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Published by Derbyshire Dales District Council, Town Hall, Matlock DE4 3NN www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk Phone 01629 761100

When you have finished with this leaflet please recycle it.

This leaflet contains statutory information and cost less than 3p to produce

� The Revenues and Benefits Sections are open for visits at the Town Hall, Matlock, on Mon & Thu 9am - 12noon and Tues, Wed & Fri 9am - 5pm. The phone lines are open Mon, Wed, Thu & Fri 9am - 5pm and Tue 10.30am - 5pm.

CONTACT US: Revenues Section (Council Tax & Business Rates) Tel 01629 761222 Fax 01629 761148 Email: revenues@derbyshiredales.gov.uk

Benefits Section Tel 01629 761188 Fax 01629 761148 Email: benefits@derbyshiredales.gov.uk

Telephone Payments: 01629 761295 (to pay by debit/credit card) Online Payments: www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/pay Direct Debit Payments: Call 01629 761222

Y et again we’re freezing the Council Tax for Derbyshire Dales residents in 2013/14. The slight increase in your overall bill is explained by the increase in the budget of

Derbyshire Police and some local parish and town councils.

Your District Council is certainly feeling the impact of yet another cut in central Government funding, which has now been slashed by more than 50% in four years.

In that time we’ve made substantial cutbacks in administration and central support services and currently we employ only 270 full-time equivalent staff (down from 330 two years ago).

We concur with the Rural Services Network’s view that rural councils have to work harder than most urban areas.

Although it gets tougher each year to balance the books, we will continue to listen to you and strive to deliver the top services you expect.

This information is available in electronic, audio, Braille, large print and other languages. Please

call 01629 761100