The Parish Council’s portion of Council Tax has increased by 9.9%. For a Band D household, this is around 42p per week.
At its Full Council meeting on 1 December 2025, St. Agnes Parish Council approved its 2026/27 budget and precept. The approved parish precept is £872,600, which funds local services, community assets and support across St. Agnes, Porthtowan, Mount Hawke, Mithian and Blackwater. The Band D parish charge for 2026/27 is £244.60 per year.
Where your Council Tax goes
Most of the Council Tax paid by residents does not go to the Parish Council. For a Band D household in St. Agnes parish in 2026/27, the total Council Tax bill is £2,634.16. Of this, £2,086.36 goes to Cornwall Council, £303.20 to the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner, and £244.60 to St. Agnes Parish Council.
What does the parish increase mean?
The 2026/27 Band D parish charge is £244.60 for the year. The increase in the Parish Council element is £22.03 per year for a Band D property, which is around 42p per week.
What the Parish Council’s element funds
St. Agnes Parish Council delivers a substantial range of frontline local services. Its responsibilities span public spaces and amenities, allotments, play areas, the library, cemeteries, footpaths and car parks, alongside planning, environmental management, legal compliance, public buildings, youth services support and public toilets. These are visible, practical services that help keep the parish safe, welcoming, well-maintained and resilient.
Key drivers of the 2026/27 budget
Protecting services and community assets
Over the past year, the Council has remained focused on practical delivery: protecting valued local services, supporting community groups, investing in the assets residents use every day, and putting the Council on a stronger financial footing for the future. This has included continued investment in public toilets, car parks, footpaths, open spaces, the library, allotments, burial grounds, bus shelters and streetlighting, alongside grants and support for youth provision, the defibrillator network, village halls, the lifesaving club, the community minibus, local events and green spaces.
External costs and reserves
The Council has faced a combination of higher external costs, growing service pressures, and the need to rebuild financial resilience. Many increases arise from costs the Council has little choice but to absorb, including insurance, professional fees, telecoms and IT, utilities, vehicles, contracts, specialist advice, and regulatory compliance. In previous years, reserves were used to help offset some of these pressures and limit budget rises, but this reduced the Council’s financial resilience. Maintaining adequate reserves is fiscally necessary so that the Council can safeguard its operations, respond to unexpected costs and continue delivering key services to the community.
Devolved services and staffing pressures
The scale of the Council’s work has increased since 2019, following the devolution of services from Cornwall Council and in response to strong local support for safeguarding those services within the parish. This is why much of the budget growth sits within Administration and Amenities: these areas support the staff, systems, compliance, maintenance, and day-to-day operations needed to keep services safe, reliable and accessible. The budget has also been shaped by wider national pressures, including inflation, rising energy costs, ongoing supply-chain uncertainty, and higher employer National Insurance costs from April 2025.
Safety, compliance and cemeteries
Cemetery costs are one example of this wider picture. Burial authorities have a duty to keep burial grounds in good order and to manage memorial safety through inspections, risk assessment, record-keeping, and communication with the public. The Council seeks to manage this work proportionately, including through staff training and internal capacity where possible, but recent tragedy elsewhere in the UK has underlined why this work cannot be treated as optional or underfunded.
Representing the parish
The Council has also continued to represent residents with Cornwall Council and other partners on development impacts, road safety, parking, the public realm, Southwest Water and environmental concerns.
How the 2026/27 budget is allocated
The largest budget areas are Administration, Amenities and the Library. Administration covers the staffing, finance, compliance, systems, insurance, professional support and legal work needed to run the Council responsibly. Amenities covers the practical delivery and maintenance of open spaces, play areas, footpaths, streetlighting, vehicles and day-to-day assets used by residents and visitors.
How St. Agnes compares in Cornwall
Cornwall Council publishes the Band D parish and town council charges for every local council in Cornwall. St. Agnes’s Band D parish charge of £244.60 is above the Cornwall average parish/town charge of £201.37 because St. Agnes Parish Council delivers a wider range of local services than many smaller local councils. However, when viewed alongside other Cornwall town and parish councils with similar local-service responsibilities, St. Agnes remains below several comparable local councils. This is not a direct like-for-like comparison, because each council delivers a different mix of services, but it gives useful context.
A responsible financial decision
Overall, the 2026/27 budget is about ensuring that St. Agnes Parish Council can continue to deliver and protect the services local people rely on, while planning responsibly for the future. It reflects both the real cost of running modern local services and the Council’s commitment to keeping the parish safe, well-maintained, welcoming, and resilient.
For a detailed document, please see 2026_27_budget_explained_newsletter_webpage_FINAL.