Budget

We are committed to giving you value for money and we want to make every penny count towards local services, so we're always trying to find ways to work more efficiently and improve our services to you, while boosting the local economy.

We recognise that the financial climate is still challenging for households and organisations across the country and continue to strive to do more with less.

We're always looking to keep our costs down while maintaining our services. We are committed to investing in the borough’s future but will plan ahead and manage our finances wisely.

You can find out more about our forecasts and savings targets on our Spending Forecasts page.

You'll find information on our current budget, fees and charges, capital programme and details of how we balanced our budget below.

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  • Budget for 2020 to 2021

    The 2020-2021 Budget was approved by Full Council on 26 February 2020.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says: “We are committed to providing a high standard of service to our residents, despite continued reductions in funding. To allow us to maintain our services at this level, the amount of Council Tax we charge will be increasing this year. We have raised our share of Council Tax by 2.48 per cent, which equates to £5.00 per year for a band D property.”

    This means that residents pay around 57p per day for all our services - including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, supporting vulnerable local residents, housing advice and benefits.

    We keep only around 11 per cent of the overall Council Tax charge. For a band D property, the charge is £1,818.56, which breaks down as follows:

    • £206.36 for Dacorum Borough Council
    • £1,414.20 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services.
    • £198.00 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    For more information please see our  Council Tax leaflet 2020-2021 (PDF 1.62MB)

  • Budget for 2019 to 2020

    The 2019-2020 Budget was approved by Full Council on 20 February 2019.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says: “We are committed to providing a high standard of service to our residents, despite continued reductions in funding. To allow us to maintain our services at this level, the amount of Council Tax we charge will be increasing this year. We have raised our share of Council Tax by 2.99 per cent, which equates to £5.85 per year for a band D property.”

    This means that residents pay around 55p per day for all our services - including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, supporting vulnerable local residents, housing advice and benefits.

    We keep only around 11 per cent of the overall Council Tax charge. For a band D property, the charge is £1,749.30, which breaks down as follows:

    • £201.36 for Dacorum Borough Council
    • £1,359.94 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £188.00 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    For more information please see our  Council Tax leaflet 2019-2020 (PDF 1.5MB)

  • Budget for 2018 to 2019

    The 2018/19 Budget was approved by Full Council on Wednesday 21 February 2018.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says: “We are committed to maintaining the high level of frontline services and additional support we provide to our residents in the face of continued funding reductions. To enable us to do this, the amount of Council Tax we charge will be increasing. Council Tax has been raised by 2.99 per cent, which equates to £5.68 per year for a band D property.”

    This means that residents pay around 54p a day for all our services - including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, supporting vulnerable local residents, housing advice and benefits.

    We keep only around 11 per cent of the overall Council Tax charge. For a band D property, the charge is £1,679.97, which breaks down as follows:

    • £195.51 for Dacorum Borough Council’s services
    • £1,320.46 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £164 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    For more information, please see our  Council Tax 2018-19 leaflet (PDF 1MB).

  • Budget for 2017 to 2018

    The 2017/18 Budget was approved by Full Council on Wednesday 22 February 2017. In order to achieve a balanced budget, councillors agreed to an increase in the borough's council tax charge of 2.71 per cent, which will see £5 a year added to the bill for households living in a band D property.

    This means that residents pay around 52p a day for all our services - including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, supporting vulnerable local residents, housing advice and benefits.

    We keep only around 12 per cent of the overall council tax charge. For a band D property, the charge is £1,587.66, which breaks down as follows:

    • £189.83 for Dacorum Borough Council’s services
    • £1,245.83 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £152 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says: “As high demand for our services continues we are committed to maintaining the services we provide in the face of continued government funding reductions. To enable us to do this, the amount of Council Tax we charge will be increasing.

    “The decision to increase Council Tax to maintain local services was supported by over 88 per cent of residents asked at a budget consultation event earlier this year, and the increases we have agreed are in line with those recommended by Government.

    “We will continue to use our borough’s resources for the benefit of both residents and businesses to make Dacorum a great place to live, work and enjoy.”

    Our budget for the financial year 2017 to 2018 gives details of our spending, income, fees and charges, and details of the changes we have made to ensure we have a balanced budget.

    The   Budget book 2017-18 (PDF 2MB) gives this information in detail.

  • Budget for 2016 to 2017

    The 2016/17 budget was approved by Full Council on Wednesday 24 February 2016. In order to achieve a balanced budget, councillors agreed an increase in the borough's council tax charge of 2.78 per cent - an increase of less than 2p per day.

    This means that all our services, including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, housing advice and benefits, cost you around 51p a day.

    We keep only around 12 per cent of the overall council tax charge. For a band D property, the charge is £1,518.45, which breaks down as follows:

    • £184.83 for Dacorum Borough Council’s services
    • £1,186.62 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £147.00 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says: "With our budgets being squeezed harder than ever by reductions in government funding, rising prices and increased demand for our services, we will continue to adapt the way we work in order to reduce costs and balance the books for future years.

    “This year, the council tax you pay goes up by 2.78 per cent - an increase of less than 2p a day. This means that you pay less than 52p a day for the local services we deliver for you – from street cleaning and recycling to planning services and supporting vulnerable local residents. We will continue to invest in our regeneration programmes to create growth across the borough and deliver the kind of area that local people can be proud of. With quality housing, reliable local services, a wide range of facilities and great employment prospects, we want to give all of our residents access to the best opportunities that Dacorum has to offer.”

    Our budget for the financial year 2016 to 2017 gives details of our spending, income, fees and charges, and details of the changes we have made to ensure we have a balanced budget.

    The detailed Budget Book for the financial year 2016 to 2017 (PDF 2.6MB) gives this information in detail.

  • Budget for 2015 to 2016

    At a meeting of Full Council on Wednesday 25 February 2015, councillors agreed an increase in the borough's council tax charge in order to achieve a balanced budget. For the average (band D) household, the increase amounts to £3.18 each year - less than 1p more per day.

    This means that all our services, including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, housing advice and benefits, cost you a total of 49p a day.

    Dacorum Borough Council keeps only around 12 per cent of the overall council tax charge. For an average (band D) property, the charge is £1,468.74, which breaks down as follows:

    • £179.83 for Dacorum Borough Council’s services
    • £1,141.09 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £147.82 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says:

    "We know that many families’ budgets are still being squeezed, so we have tried to keep the increase in your council tax as low as we can. Our share of the council tax you pay has gone up by 1.8 per cent this year – an increase of less than 1p a day, so you pay around 49p a day for all our services.

    "We want to make every penny count toward local services, so we are continuing to look at ways that we can work more efficiently and improve our services to you while boosting the local economy."

    Our budget for the financial year 2015 to 2016 gives details of our spending, income, fees and charges, and details of the changes we have made to ensure we have a balanced budget.

    The detailed Budget Book for the financial year 2015 to 2016 (PDF 2,782 KB) gives this information in detail.
  • Budget for 2014 to 2015

    At a meeting of Full Council on Wednesday 26 February 2014, councillors agreed a below inflation 1.75 per cent increase in the borough's council tax charge in order to achieve a balanced budget. For the average (band D) household, the increase amounts to £3.04 each year - less than 1p more per day.

    This means that all our services, including refuse collection and recycling, street cleaning, environmental health, planning, licensing, housing advice and benefits, cost you a total of 48p a day.

    Dacorum Borough Council keeps only around 12 per cent of the overall council tax charge. For an average (band D) property, the charge is £1,443.30 which breaks down as follows.

    • £176.65 for Dacorum Borough Council’s services
    • £1,118.83 goes to Hertfordshire County Council to pay for services such as highways, education and care services
    • £147.82 goes to the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire.

    If you live in areas served by town and parish councils, you will also pay an extra charge for their services.

    Councillor Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council, says:

    "The difficult economic climate is still affecting our budget. Because people are spending less, we receive less money from fees and charges, low interest rates mean our investments are making less money and our grant from the Government has been reduced.

    "We know that many families are also finding their budgets are being squeezed, so we have tried to keep the increase in council tax as low as we can. Our share of the council tax you pay has gone up by 1.75 per cent this year – an increase of less than 1p a day, so you pay around 48p a day for all our services.

    "We want to make every penny count toward local services, so we are continuing to look at ways that we can work more efficiently and improve our services to you while boosting the local economy."

    Our budget for the financial year 2014 to 2015 (PDF 891 KB) gives details of our spending, income, fees and charges, and details of the changes we have made to ensure we have a balanced budget.

    The detailed budget book for the financial year 2014 to 2015 (PDF 1.7MB) gives this information in more detail.

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