Where is your money going?

Almost every homeowner has to pay Council Tax yet very few people know where it goes and how it is used.

Kettering Borough Council is required to collect Council Tax from homeowners by law. The average household in the borough pays around £1,110 a year, the majority of which, about 72%, goes to the County Council to help pay for services such as schools, roads and social services.

Kettering Borough Council holds onto around 14% of the amount collected, which is  just over £3 per week for the average household. The remainder goes to the Police to help pay for their services.

Kettering Borough Council's net spending is around £14 million a year helping to deliver important local services, some of which are listed below. Around half of this expenditure is funded from Council Tax with the remainder coming from Central Government grants.


The Council consults local people on how and where it spends its money and we want you to have your say in how it is used.

The Council has recently completed its statutory budget consultation holding a public meeting to debate its budget, and asked for people's views at the town centre shop. We will continue to listen to customer's views on spending throughout the year. There are a number of ways you can help influence where the Council spends money:

• Talk to your local councillor. They can help represent your views in council meetings

• Come along to one of the many public meetings held at the Council. You can have your say and your view does count

• Let us know what you think. We are keen to listen and take action where we can.

Key facts:

• The average Council Tax payer pays just over £3 per week for services provided by Kettering Borough Council

• The Council has saved around £2 million through efficiency measures in the last five years.

What do you get for your money?

Here are some of the services that are provided for your money:
- Refuse and recycling
- Planning services
- Street cleaning
- Housing and Council Tax benefit processing
- Parks and children's play areas
- Environmental Health services
- Removal of graffiti and fly-tipping
- Stray dog collections
- Museums and cultural facilities
- Travel concession schemes