A think tank cites Radcliffe's jump to £312 at band D as it calls for a cap on parish tax. Its plan would have limited the rise to £5 without a new mandate.

Radcliffe on Trent is the first example in a national report calling for a cap on parish council tax. The Adam Smith Institute published it on Friday.

The report, “Parish the Thought”, says parish and town councils are the only tier of English local government that can raise their share of council tax with no ceiling and no referendum. Its first example of what that allows is Radcliffe, where the parish charge rose by 179% this year to £312.00 for a band D home. (Adam Smith Institute, press release)

Radcliffe on Trent is about four miles east of West Bridgford along the A52.

What the report says about Radcliffe

The report points out that Radcliffe’s parish charge is now higher than the whole of Rushcliffe Borough Council’s. The borough takes £161.77 from a band D bill this year. The parish takes £312.00. (Adam Smith Institute, “Parish the Thought”)

It says the rise was put down locally to years of underfunding and a need to invest for the future. Its wider findings include:

  • the average band D parish charge in England has nearly doubled since 2013 to 2014
  • it rose 8.2% this year, the second-highest increase on record
  • 173 parish councils now charge more than the typical shire district council
  • 67% of parish seats up for election in 2026 were won uncontested
Bar chart of band D charges: Radcliffe on Trent parish £111.88 in 2025/26 and £312.00 in 2026/27, Rushcliffe Borough Council £161.77 and the West Bridgford special expense £67.40 in 2026/27
Radcliffe's parish charge against the borough's own share and West Bridgford's special expense. Chart by West Bridgford Live
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Where the money goes

The parish council’s own statement for 2026/27 sets its precept at £1,022,803.08. That is up from £331,800 last year, according to Rushcliffe’s council tax figures. The band D charge went from £111.88 to £312.00, a rise of £200.12. (Radcliffe on Trent Parish Council, statement of activities 2026/27)

The parish gives four reasons:

  • inflation and running costs, including staff, utilities, insurance and mowing contracts
  • maintenance of its play areas, buildings, land and open spaces
  • £330,823 of capital savings, to replace assets at the end of their life
  • £32,500 of capital projects to upgrade what it owns

Its biggest single budget line is staff, at £325,000. The council says it owns assets worth around £6m. They include The Grange and Grange Hall, Rockley Memorial Park, the Wharf Lane sports ground, the skatepark, Cliff Walk, the Lily Ponds and the Vicarage Lane cemetery. Its councillors are unpaid.

What the cap would have meant

The report proposes a legal cap on how much a parish can raise its charge each year. For a parish already charging more than half the national average, the limit would be 3% or £5, whichever is greater. A council would need a fresh mandate from voters to go further: a referendum for the largest, or by-elections or a parishioner poll for smaller ones.

On our arithmetic, Radcliffe’s charge last year was £111.88. Three per cent of that is £3.36, so the £5 limit would have applied. The actual rise was £200.12, forty times that.

The report is a proposal from a think tank. The Government has not adopted it, and parish precepts remain uncapped.

Why it matters in West Bridgford

West Bridgford has no parish or town council. Instead, Rushcliffe charges a West Bridgford special expense of £67.40 at band D for local parks, play areas and events.

That could change. Rushcliffe is running a review after a petition for a West Bridgford Town Council. If one is created, it would set its own precept each year. Under the current rules, that would carry no cap and no referendum, exactly as in Radcliffe.

What it means for you

  • If you live in Radcliffe, the parish council’s budget and its reasons are in its statement of activities, linked above. Questions go to the parish clerk at clerk@rotparishcouncil.gov.uk.
  • If you live in West Bridgford, the town council review is the moment to ask what a new precept would cost and what it would pay for.
  • Every Rushcliffe bill, band by band and parish by parish, is on our council tax page.

Sources