RESIDENTS in some villages in the York area are facing a 33 per cent hike in payments to their parish council, The Press can reveal.

Strensall with Towthorpe Parish Council has increased its precept on residents from £15,000 to £20,000, leaving a Band D household having to pay an extra £2.44 a year.

The Taxpayers’ Alliance said today that while the increase might not be huge, an important principle was at stake.

Andrew Allison, the alliance’s Grassroots Co-ordinator, said: “The majority of local authorities have frozen council tax for the current financial year, and have reined in spending. Parish councils should be doing the same.”

However, Susan Nunn, Strensall with Towthorpe Parish Council’s clerk, said it had had to put up the precept to maintain the level of service it provided –“and so far we haven’t had any complaints”.

She said: “Our precept has been the same for many, many years, and for the past few years we have had to use money from our reserve.”

Hefty increases have also been brought in by Wheldrake and Rawcliffe Parish Councils, both of which have hiked their precept by 20 per cent.

Coun Richard Moore, chairman of Rawcliffe Parish Council, said it was the third biggest parish council in York, and its budget had actually been reduced by 12 per cent the previous year.

He said: “With the City of York Council cuts, many parish councils are mindful they will not be receiving as much help from the council with certain projects like they did last year, so will have to provide for them themselves of cut the service. This year we have to provide £2,000 to our grass cutting team, for example.”

Tracey Daniels, Wheldrake Parish Council’s clerk, said it had to pay for essential repairs to the village hall after damage from burst water pipes over the harsh winter.

She said: “We always work with the best interest of the village parishioners firmly at the forefront of our minds.”

While most of York’s 31 parishes have frozen their precepts this year, four have cut their bills – Stockton-on-the-Forest by 1.74 per cent, New Earswick by 9.09 per cent, Elvington by 9.86 per cent and Earswick by 9.09 per cent.