FARNHAM’S share of the council tax bill will increase by 2.99 per cent in April, as agreed during last Thursday’s Farnham Town Council meeting.

For an average Band D property, this means an increase of £1.87 a year – or 3.6 pence per week – from £62.62 to £64.49.

This equates to £1.24 per week for a Band D household. Farnham Town Council (FTC) says it has had to increase its share of council tax in order to bridge a budget shortfall of £31,939.

Addressing the council, FTC leader Carole Cockburn said councillors had to decide whether “we go to reserves, do we try and do some income targets, do we try and save even more or do we ask the public to contribute 3.6 pennies a week for a Band D, or 2.99 per cent, to fund the shortfall?”.

“And remember everything we do for the town and will probably have to take on more services rather than fewer,” she added.

Town clerk Iain Lynch also told councillors he had received some “interesting comparative data”, showing the increases that have taken place in precepts since 2014 across all the councils in the South East. He said the “increases in Farnham have gone up by less than half the national average”.

Mr Lynch added FTC has “gradually been dropping further and further down the table in terms of the percentage we’re taking compared to other councils”, although added “we’re not complacent about that”.

In response to a question by councillor Simon Foale asking whether the council budget has been “routinely underspent”, Mrs Cockburn stated they “very rarely underspend” – “allocating funds to specific projects and making sure we use every penny wisely”.

Jill Hargreaves added: “I’ve always been brought up that one should never ever delve into one’s assets or reserves because come a rainy day, and I really mean a rainy day, that’s when you need it.”

She went on to praise the town clerk for always “looking to the future of getting a good deal for our residents”.

During the meeting, councillors also agreed to service agreement contributions to Waverley Hoppa Service, Farnham Maltings, Citizens Advice Waverley, 40 Degreez and The Gostrey Centre.

Members further agreed to a number of community grants to organisations including Bells Piece Support Group, Challengers, Creative Response Arts Limited, Enterprise 19, The Farnham Festival Farnham Brass Band, Leverton Hall at St Peter’s Church in Wrecclesham and Sandy Hill Inclusive Partnership.

An additional contribution of £500 was agreed for the Farnham Taiko drummers from the 2018-19 grants budget, increasing to a grant of £1,000 from next year.