58p rise in precept to pay for essential work to Chatteris Christmas lights

Residents in Chatteris will be paying an extra 58p a year to the town council to help pay for services including the Christmas lights.

Councillors discussed the draft budget for next year at their meeting on Tuesday night when the council’s finance officer Angela Papworth set out her proposals.

She said that she and the town clerk had been through the past year’s expenditure and had actually managed to make savings in the upcoming year.

However, she said there was a need to increase the precept by 58p per average household because £4,000 was needed to help pay for new electrical installations for the town’s Christmas lights.

Clerk Jo Melton said the installations were around 40 years old and no longer met regulations. She said the matter had been discussed with Cambridgeshire County Council and it had been agreed to spread the work of upgrading them over three years.

She said the lights are hugely popular as demonstrated by the turn out of the lights switch-on at the weekend and Mrs Melton said: “We don’t want to tell people they can no longer have the lights so we have no choice they are not meeting the standards and I’m afraid it is down to us to find the money to pay for the work.”

The council already has money in its budget to pay for the running of the lights each Christmas, but that would not cover the extra costs of the upgrade work.

Cllr Sue Unwin said: “What does the county council provide in our communities? We had the saga with the health and safety over the hanging baskets in the summer and now this.”

But she added: “We have two groups the whole community fully is behind – In Bloom and the Christmas lights so at the end of the day we have to do this.”

Cllr Alan Gowler said: “Personally I don’t like increasing the precept, so it’s disappointing that we have got to do it.”

Funding for the King Edward Community Centre is also set to rise but Cllr James Carney questioned why it was necessary to increase the grant when the centre is so successful and “busier than ever”.

Mrs Papworth explained the rise was needed to cover the increase in running costs and ongoing maintenance costs.

Mayor Cllr Anne Hay said: “I know there are people in dire circumstances, but I would say most people would see 58p worth it just for the Christmas lights.”

The draft budget was unanimously supported.