Subscribe to trusted local news
If you are accessing this story via Facebook but you are a subscriber then you will be unable to access the story. Facebook wants you to stay and read in the app and your login details are not shared with Facebook. If you experience problems with accessing the news but have subscribed, please contact subscriptions@thestrayferret.co.uk. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
- Subscription costs less than £1 a week with an annual plan.
Already a subscriber? Log in here.
16
Mar
Explainer: Why is your council tax bill rising by more than 4.99%?
Final council tax bills have landed on doorsteps in North Yorkshire.
Many people are asking why their bills have risen by more than the maximum 4.99%.
North Yorkshire Council, after all, must hold a referendum if it wants to increase its council tax precept by more than 4.99%.
But North Yorkshire Council is just one of four organisations that charge a precept for council tax.
The others are North Yorkshire Police, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service and parish councils — and none of these is bound by the 4.99% cap.
The precept for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service has increased by 8.97%.
The precept for North Yorkshire has risen by 4.97%.
Each parish council sets its own precept. Harrogate Town Council increased its by 105%.
So in Harrogate, for example, the amount paid by a Band D household has increased by 5.6% from £2,380.15 to £2,514.58 in 2026/27.
Here’s how it is broken down:
Band D 2025/26
• North Yorkshire Council - £1,939.54
• North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue - £107.02
• North Yorkshire Police - £320.86
• Harrogate Town Council - £12.73
Total £2,380.15
Band D 2026/27
• North Yorkshire Council - £2,036.32
• North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue - £116.62
• North Yorkshire Police - £335.86
• Harrogate Town Council - £25.78
Total £2,514.58
0