MORE than 1,000 households in Ryedale were summonsed to court for council tax arrears between April 2007 and March last year, new figures have revealed.

Research conducted by the Liberal Democrat Party shows that, between April 1 2007 and March 31 last year, 1,140 households in the area were told to go to court for non-payment of the levy.

In the same period in the region, there were 450 bailiff visits to collect the tax, and Ryedale District Council (RDC) filed for bankruptcy to collect arrears on a dozen occasions.

In the East Riding of Yorkshire, 9,460 households were summonsed to court for arrears, and there were 3,958 bailiff visits.

Howard Keal, leader of the Liberal Democrat group on RDC, is to ask Robert Wainwright, the chair of RDC’s policy and resources committee, if he will consider at a future meeting the adoption of a code of conduct “to protect and help people who have run into trouble with payments of council tax”. Coun Keal will pose the question at next Thursday’s full council meeting.

He will propose that, to ensure RDC takes “every reasonable opportunity” to support struggling families, the committee agrees that:

* Households in debt must be advised of their local independent financial advice centre.

* Households in debt must be offered the opportunity to negotiate a payment plan for the debt.

* The authority should carry out a benefits entitlement check before further enforcement action is pursued.

* The authority should take into account other debts owed by the individual to the authority and, where possible, draw them into one, simple payment plan.

Coun Keal will also ask Coun Wainwright to agree that “it is appropriate for the committee to consider these measures to prevent the authority from sending in bailiffs or filing for bankruptcy against householders to collect council tax arrears except as a last resort.”

Coun Keal said: “The measures I’ve called on the authority to adopt are good practise designed to help people struggling through no fault of their own, not those who deliberately set out to evade paying their share.”

Coun Wainwright said: “The council appreciates that individuals are facing some tough financial decisions in these difficult and changing times.

“The council does not take any actions against late or non payers of council tax without careful thought to the consequences and ramifications of their decision.

“Our officers already assist people that have council tax problems and also offer help and guidance to accessing assistance from outside organisations.

“Ryedale’s Citizens Advice Bureau has a debt councillor which RDC helps to fund. We are considering offering further financial assistance to ensure that an adequate service is maintained.”