What does my Council Tax pay for?

We understand that Council Tax is a large portion of your monthly outgoings, so we want to share openly how we are spending your contributions.

Residents of Horsham District benefit from a wide range of services for as little as £3.21 a week per Band D household.

View Council Tax charges for Horsham District

How is my Council Tax shared out?

Although Horsham District Council collects all your Council Tax it only retains 7.9%. The remainder is split over the following authorities:

How is my Council Tax spent?

Council Tax is spent to deliver a wide range of services, of which the more significant ones are set out below.

Horsham District Council

  • Environment and local communities
  • Parks, open spaces and play areas
  • Recycling and waste collection
  • Leisure and culture facilities
  • Wellbeing services
  • Housing and housing benefits
  • Parking
  • Planning services
  • Supporting voluntary groups
  • Environmental health and licensing
  • Supporting the local economy

West Sussex County Council

  • Social care and health
  • Education, children and families
  • Fire and rescue
  • Roads and travel
  • Environment, housing and planning
  • Libraries
  • Leisure, recreation and community
  • Registrar services

Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner

  • Local policing services
  • Crime prevention
  • Access to justice
  • Victim support and protection

Parishes/Neighbourhood Councils

  • Community centres
  • Community events
  • Community safety
  • Planning consultation
  • Parks, open spaces and recreation
  • Bus shelters, litter bins, street cleaning

View Council Tax charges and financial information

How does Horsham District Council spend your money? Our 2023/24 budget

Your Council Tax makes up 27%of our income. This contributes towards our total budget for 2022/23 of £42.8million, and this is how it will be spent.

Leisure and culture

£4.9 million, or 11.4% of the budget will be spent on leisure and culture. This includes:

  • Parks and open spaces
  • Play areas
  • Horsham Museum & Art Gallery
  • The Capitol
  • Leisure centres
  • Sports facilities and activities

Revenues and Benefits, Housing and Community Services

£6.9million, or 16.1% of the budget will be spent on Revenues and Benefits, housing and community services. This includes:

  • Council Tax
  • Benefits
  • Business rates
  • Housing support
  • Homelessness
  • Health and wellbeing
  • Volunteer support
  • Community safety

Recycling, Waste and Environmental Services

£11.5million, or 26.8% of the budget will be spent on Recycling, Waste and Environmental Services. This includes:

  • Bins
  • Recycling
  • Business waste
  • Street cleaning
  • Fly tipping and littering
  • Food hygiene
  • Work health and safety
  • Licensing
  • Community Link service

Parking

£2.4million, or 5.6% of the budget will be spent on Parking. This includes:

  • Maintenance of car parks
  • Parking permits
  • Enforcement
  • Mobility services

Planning, Property, Building Control and Economic Development

£8.1million, or 18.9% of the budget will  be spent on Planning, Property, Building Control and Economic Development. This includes:

  • Planning applications
  • Planning policy
  • Neighbourhood planning
  • Conservation
  • Building control
  • Business and employment support
  • Climate and sustainability

Supporting front-line services

£9.0million, or 21.2% of the budget will be spent on supporting front-line services. This includes:

  • Customer services
  • Technology
  • Legal
  • Finances
  • Democracy and emergency planning