A SCHEME to help people pay their council tax on time is to be extended after more than 1,500 court cases were avoided.

Last August, the council introduced a pilot project that saw households who were falling behind on their council tax payments telephoned as a reminder before court proceedings began.

The project finished at the end of March and in that time almost 3,000 calls were made.

As a result, 911 outstanding amounts were paid immediately and a further 663 payment plans were set up.

More than 240 were also referred on to debt management services.

The high level of success with the pilot schemes led council leaders to push ahead with the project on a permanent basis at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday night.

While there has been a cost to the council with the project, it is felt that saving people the £410 cost of going to court and potentially having property seized, along with the emotional impact, outweighs this.

A report which went before the cabinet said: “The payment of such costs may affect the well-being of these households and result in their needing support from other council or public sector services, and so by reducing the numbers of summonses required and subsequent additional debt for the individual we may be reducing these impacts.

“Increasing council tax collection without having to undertake recovery proceedings is the one of the objectives of the council’s revenues and benefits service.”

In total, during the financial year 11,000 summonses were issued across the borough, although this is down 3,000 on the previous year.

To make the project permanent, two staff members are to be employed at a total cost of £40,000 so more calls can be made.

As well as extending the project, council chiefs have commissioned research to look at the full impact on services by households who are in debt.

A group of officers, as well as representatives from the Department of Work and Pensions and other relevant organisations want to examine full costs so they have a better idea of how to tackle the problem.

The cabinet report said: “The group is seeking to determine what effects debt and worklessness have on households in Swindon.

“As well as difficulties for the households it is also believed that these effects create demand and costs for other council and public sector services.

“The group has therefore advised the cabinet member that research is undertaken to determine the extent of these issues and the affects they are creating.

“Once the research is undertaken it is hoped that plans to identify what additional support can be provided to households can be produced and implemented.

“Such measures it is believed will then result in a reduction of support needed at crisis points.”