SMALL PROPORTION FOR BRIGG

Brigg Town Council will need £117,027 in funding for the 'fiscal year' 2010/11 - compared with the current £97,650.
The proportion of each Brigg household's overall council tax bill which finds its way into the Town Council's coffers is always very small; the majority of what we pay (currently just over £1,000 to £3,000 depending on your home's banding) goes to North Lincolnshire Council (which oversees major services like education and refuse collection). We also contribute to policing and fire.
North Lincolnshire Council does the collecting, with just one bill being sent out.
The Town Council approved its 'prepept' for the next financial year at the January meeting in the Angel Suite, when Coun Jenny Bell (pictured) said: "We have tried our best to be as frugal as we can."
The Town Council manages the allotments in Redcombe Lane and Grammar School Road, oversees the Angel Suite community venue, supports local groups through small grants and also 'major events' such as the music and drama festival and communal bonfire (after considering requests). It also organises the town centre's Christmas lights.
Once all town and parish councils, plus police and fire, have decided how much they need, North Lincolnshire Council will include them with its own requirements and send out bills for the entire amount for 2010/11.
Only then will we find out how much Brigg households will have to pay. North Lincolnshire Council is what they call the precepting authority and is responsible for billing and collection. So we can't give you a figure for how much more Brigg Town Council will ask from each household in 2010/11 compared to the current financial year. But Paul Daniels' catchphrase "Not a lot" will apply, in terms of the overall payment.
The Scunthorpe Telegraph will report at length on the major figure everyone wants to know - North Lincolnshire Council's. All the charges for the various bands will then be set out in a neat chart and uploaded to the authority's website www.northlincs.gov.uk. Plus being advertised in the press.
Households will also get helpful leaflets in the post, with the annual bill.
Local government finance is a tedious topic, it's true, but a very important one for those who foot the bill, the councillors responsible for deciding how funds are going to be spent, and for the staff whose jobs are paid for out of the public purse.