Cost of living struggles mean council tax collection in Slough is still behind target, a new report has said.
Slough Borough Council is hundreds of thousands of pounds behind its council tax collection target.
A report to council leaders said the shortfall came as ‘residents continue to struggle with cost of living increases’, adding that there was a ‘similar trend across Berkshire councils.
The LDRS reported in February that five of Berkshire’s six councils were either behind target for council tax collection or not keeping pace with previous years.
Slough Borough Council, West Berkshire Council and Reading Borough Council all suggested that cost of living pressures might have affected residents’ ability to pay.
A Slough Borough Council spokesperson told the LDRS in February that the council was 0.96% behind its 63.8% collection target by the end of December last year.
They said this was worth £906,000.
The latest report, presented to council leaders on Monday, 14 April, suggests the gap has grown.
It said Slough Borough Council had now collected 79.95% of last year’s council tax, 1.05% behind its 81% target.
The report said the council is supporting residents who are struggling to pay.
It said: “The council continues to support those who require longer to pay, closely monitoring the recovery status on in-year arrears, moving along the recovery process as quickly as we can while providing support to council taxpayers that reach out to us.”
