Ipswich Borough Council unveils investment in parks and safer streets – and a cut in Council Tax for 7,500 households

Published1st February 2022

Ipswich Borough Council has unveiled a series of investments to the town’s parks and to make streets safer as part of its draft budget for the next financial year. The investments include:

  • A new five year £3.5M programme to dramatically improve the quality of play areas across the town;
  • The purchase of 5 new mobile CCTV cameras than can be deployed to Anti-Social Behaviour hot spots across the town;
  • £20,000 to deliver a Safety of Women at Night action after a bid to the Home Office for this work was refused;
  • £1.5M of Council funding set aside for a Chantry Park lottery bid;
  • Leaving all Ipswich Borough Council-owned street lights on all night

To help tackle the cost of living crisis the Council is also proposing a £10 discount for all 7,500+ households receiving Local Council Tax Support - that is those households in greatest need of financial support. This will mean that every household currently receiving Local Council Tax Support will see a cut in their bills from April. This discount scheme was proposed by Ipswich Borough Council and has been supported by Suffolk County Council but not by the Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner.

For everyone else, the Borough Council is proposing to increase Council Tax by 1.98% - the equivalent of just 11p a week extra for the average Band B property. This is less than the 2.99% being proposed for Suffolk County Council and the 4.2% increase agreed by the Police and Crime Commissioner and is also less than half the current inflation rate of 5.4%.

This below inflation increase is being proposed despite a great deal of uncertainty about the Council’s finances. These are still under pressure through the impact of Covid (such as fewer customers to leisure centres and car parks), the National Insurance increase due in April (the increase will add £700,000 to the Council’s wage bill over the next four years) as well as the rising cost of services and materials.

Other measures to save Ipswich households money include:

  • Free brown bin service;
  • Free Summer i-Card offer for school age children;
  • Solar PV and insulation programme for council homes;

The proposals will be first considered by the Council’s Executive meeting on Tuesday 8 February and then, if endorsed there, by the Council’s Full Council meeting on Wednesday 23 February 2022.

Cllr David Ellesmere, Leader of Ipswich Borough Council, says:

“We know many households are facing a cost-of-living crisis as a result of rising food, fuel and energy prices and the forthcoming National Insurance increase. We’re determined not to add to it unnecessarily which is why we’re cutting Council Tax bills for 7,500 households in Ipswich and levying the lowest increase out of the County Council and Police and Crime Commissioner for everyone else.

“We’re also helping to keep everyone’s bills down by retaining free brown bin collections and the free young persons’ Summer i-Card.

“Many people gained a new-found appreciation of our fabulous parks over lockdown and we are investing to make them even better. The new play areas at Christchurch Park, Alexandra Park and Dumbarton Road have been incredibly popular and we are now planning to roll out play areas of this quality right across the town.

“Too many people currently feel unsafe in Ipswich. We’re doing our bit to improve safety by investing in five new mobile CCTV cameras that can be deployed to crime and anti-social behaviour spots anywhere in the town and funding an action plan to improve the safety of women at night.”