The leafy home county of Surrey is seriously considering a 15 per cent council rise to close the funding gap in its social care bill.

As the cost of caring for the country’s disabled and elderly people rises, the amount of money available to councils has plummeted as a result of Government austerity funding cuts – and Surrey says it needs to raise more from local taxpayers.

Any rise of the standard council tax rate over two per cent requires a referendum, and the Tory controlled council has announced that a vote will take place in May asking residents for their approval.

But despite a social care funding crisis and huge pressure on other council budgets Birmingham is highly unlikely to follow suit when it approves its budget on February 28.

Here the proposed increase will be 3.99 per cent - a general increase of 1.99 per cent topped up with a two per cent charge specifically for social care.

Surrey County Council leader David Hodge said: “Demand for adult social care, learning disabilities and children’s services is increasing every year. So I regret, despite us finding £450 million worth of savings from our annual budget, we have no choice but to propose this increase in council tax.”

Surrey County Council leader David Hodge announced a referendum on raising council tax by 15% in response to the crisis in social care

The move will add almost £200 to average Band D council tax bills in Surrey.

The reaction and referendum in Surrey is being closely watched by council leaders the length and breadth of Britain. The leader of Windsor and Maidenhead Council, Prime Minister Theresa May’s borough no less, has described Surrey as the ‘canary in the coal mine’ - the first council to buckle under the extreme funding pressure.

Residents will not only be asked if they prefer paying 15 per cent more or five per cent more than they are now - we all know how that vote would go. They will also be handed a list of local services and facilities (for example: libraries, bin collections, leisure centres, pot hole filling and street sweeping) which will be closed or rolled back, if they vote for the lower figure.

Given the uproar after Birmingham’s proposed budget cuts were announced last month it would be fair to assume council leader John Clancy and his Labour colleagues are considering a similar move.

Birmingham Council House in Victoria Square.
Birmingham Council House in Victoria Square.

But there are crucial differences between leafy Surrey and urban Birmingham.

Surrey raises more than a third of its revenue budget from council tax and, packed with London commuter belt towns, the average house price is more than £500,000.

In contrast Birmingham raises just eight per cent of its revenue from council tax and the average house price is £134,000.

With more taxpayers paying at a higher rate the increase for Surrey would have a massive impact on the over all budget. Every one per cent increase raises about £6 million for the under pressure budget. In Birmingham the figure is less than £3 million - in a city with much higher dependency and demands on social care and child protection services.

What works for Surrey, will not work here. That is why, however the people of Surrey vote, the city council is unlikely to land its citizens with a referendum and a whopping bill.