FARNHAM householders can expect a 4.5 per cent increase in the council tax demand to cover Farnham Town Council's spending in 2006/07. The average, Band D, taxpayer will pay £47.93 for the council's services - an extra £1.85 compared to the current year. The figures were finalised as the town council approved its budget for the coming year, resulting in a precept for £801.167. Council leader Mark Norris pointed out that the council had moved on greatly from being an organisation which was not responsible for any services directly. It now not only had responsibility for the allotments, but also the cemeteries and CCTV in the town. It had agreed to take on responsibility for public conveniences and was also taking charge of Farnham in Bloom. Helped by sponsorship, the intention was to expand the In Bloom initiative into some of the villages. Chris Mansell commented that in terms of what Farnham Town Council contributes, particularly in the areas of public conveniences and the new tourism strategy, Farnham residents were getting "pretty good value for money". Included in the budget calculations is a one- off reserve of £100,000 being set aside for the town council's Urban Safety Management Scheme. The £855,000 project to improve the lot of non-motorist users of the town centre will largely have to wait until Surrey County Council finances are available - probably not until 2010. The placing of £100,000 in reserve was not actually a decision to spend £100,000, said town clerk Roland Potter. Susan Farrow, the chairman of the town council's environmental services committee, added: "This is really the town council putting its money where its mouth is. We have done the work, we have received the recommendations, we have endorsed them. The money has to be found to pay for it, and this will be part of our contribution." Earlier in the meeting, the town council agreed to accept Waverley Council's proposals for the handing over of the ownership and management of the public conveniences in Central car park and Gostrey Meadow and of a new facility to be built in the Hart car park. Waverley is to spend a total of £76,000 on the three public toilets before handover. The town council, however, wants to see a higher standard of renovation works and has therefore included £45,000 in its 2006/07 capital programme. Mr Norris reminded councillors that the town council's Health Check had clearly revealed residents' dissatisfaction with the quality of toilet provision. "It is important that we provide a better quality of service than has been provided," he said. The proposal is to employ two part-time staff, each working 28 hours a week, to clean and maintain the facilities. Mr Norris said the upgrading works would assist with maintenance and that automatic systems would allow locking and unlocking from the council offices, reducing staffing costs. The town council's decision not to contribute to the Farnham Tourist Information Centre (TIC), which will now close at the end of March, has brought about a £30,000 decrease in the budget estimates. "I did hope that people would not misunderstand what the town council is doing here," said Mrs Farrow. She said the TIC was a function defined by the SE Tourist Board, to provide information about travelling all around the South East. It therefore would not be right for the town council to continue to fund it in its present form. "It has rather outlived its usefulness. Under two per cent of visitors to Farnham use the TIC," said Mrs Farrow. She went on to refer to the council's tourism strategy which will utilise touch screens and the web. "We can promote Farnhamand the surrounding area in the way it needs to be promoted and has never been promoted before." A further variation in the budget arises from the fact that Arkeco lost a major contract with Waverley Borough Council and as a result is no longer maintaining the four cemeteries in Farnham. The savings to the town council will enable it to utilise its current outside workforce for grounds maintenance, boosted by an extra member of staff and casual help at busy times.
