Swale council is planning to plunder £1.65 million from its reserves to plug a hole in its budget so it can limit the increase of council tax to under 3%.

It is planning a rise of £5.12 for a Band D property taking the total annual cost from £184.15 to £189.27. The new charge will be from April, if agreed by the Cabinet next Wednesday. That represents a weekly increase of 10p.

Council leader Roger Truelove (Lab, Homewood) said: "In line with Government expectations and the position of many other councils, we will be using some of our savings to balance the budget."

He explained: "We had already created a reserve of £2 million and will use £1.65 million of that in this difficult year.

“Our current budget for the next financial year shows a gap of £1.65 million but thanks to sound financial management since the pandemic began we will meet the deficit with council reserves and government grants."

He added: "Despite the financial implications of the pandemic, I believe we owe it to Swale residents to make improvements across the borough and we’ll continue to use our reserves to encourage growth and recovery in the borough.”

The council is facing financial pressures because of covid costs, the uncertainty around Government funding, increased expenditure such as the rising cost of homelessness and the loss of income on items such as car parks.

Last year Swale, which covers Sittingbourne, Faversham and the Isle of Sheppey, increased council tax by £4.95.

Council tax bands range from A, the lowest, to H, the highest. Most Swale properties are in bands A to C. Band D is used nationwide to compare rates.

Residents' council tax also includes payments to other authorities such as Kent County Council, which takes the bulk of the money (73%), Kent Police (11%) and Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue (4%). Swale takes about 10%. Those living in areas with town or parish councils have to pay an extra 2% on average.

KCC voted through a 2.99% increase on Thursday equal to an additional 82p a week for a typical band D property - 1% of the rise will be ring-fenced to spend on adult social care.

For more information, visit www.swale.gov.uk/council-tax.