FOREST residents are being invited to question district councillors on the authority’s spending plans following a 2.65 per cent increase in Council Tax for the coming financial year.

Forest of Dean District Councillors and staff are hosting an online Q&A in which local people will have the opportunity to join in with discussions about the authority’s proposed budget for 2022/23, as well as work being done in communities across the district.

A panel will discuss how the council aims to “tackle the financial pressures” on local authorities through its budget during the session next Wednesday (April 6).

Leader of the Council, Cllr Tim Gwilliam, explained: “At the Council, we always want to interact and speak with our communities and a Facebook Live Q&A is a great opportunity for residents to get involved and ask any questions they may have.

“In this Q&A we’ll be discussing the Council budget and the fantastic work that our Community Team is doing throughout the district, including that work done by our Community Wellbeing Team and Council Street Warden Team.

“If you have any questions or comments regarding the budget and our work in the community, please do not hesitate to send them in, or to tune in live on Facebook on 6th April at 6pm, where I’ll be joined by Deputy Leader of the Council Paul Hiett, Cabinet Member for Finance Cllr Richard Leppington and Community Wellbeing Manager Nicola McLean to talk about the exciting work taking place in the Forest of Dean.”

The Council approved its budget proposals for 2022/23 at a meeting last month (February 17), which included setting an annual Council Tax bill of £194.03 for a Band D property - an increase of £5 from last year.

Together with a 3.7 per cent rise in the Police and Crime Commisioner’s bill to £280.08, a 2.99 per cent increase from the county council to £1,451.36 and a seperate bill from town and parish councils, the average bill for a Band D property in the Forest is set to pass £2,000.

The council has created a hardship fund for those most significantly affected by the increase.

Cllr Richard Leppington, who is the Cabinet Member for Finance, said: “It is always a difficult decision when it comes to setting the bill for our council tax, and with the savings we have made we are able to keep the rise in cost as low as possible. Despite this, we understand that some residents may have questions about their council tax.

“This Q&A will give us the opportunity to discuss the budget for the forthcoming financial year and allow us to answer any questions that the public may have.”

The Q&A will be streamed live on the council’s Facebook page at 6pm next Wednesday (April 6).

Anyone who’d like to submit questions prior to the broadcast can do so by emailing [email protected].

Alternatively, members of the public can ask questions during the live stream and these will then be put to the panel to discuss.

The council’s Facebook page can be found at www.facebook.com/FODDC.