For the third year running, Wokingham Borough Council has topped the national council tax collection charts for all local authorities.
Council taxpayers in the Wokingham Borough continue to benefit from the most efficient unitary authority tax collection system in the country, after collecting 99.5 per cent of the council tax it was owed for 2015/16 – matching the previous year, and up from 99.3 per cent and 99.4 per cent from the two before that.
The national average collection rate for 2015/16 is 97.1 per cent and each percentage point for Wokingham Borough Council equates to about £1million of council tax. This means the efficiency of the council’s collection systems generated in excess of £2million more than if it had been an average performing authority.
Cllr Anthony Pollock, executive member for economic development and finance, said: "We continue to face huge financial challenges so being able to collect the highest rate of council tax in the country for a unitary authority helps soften this.
"I would like to thank all those residents who pay their council tax on time. The money they pay every month is vital to more than 200 council services – from caring for the elderly and those with physical and learning disabilities to emptying bins and providing modern leisure and recreation facilities."
Efforts to collect the 0.5 per cent outstanding at 31 March, 2016 will continue throughout this year.
