A PARISH councillor has defended the recent decision to raise the parish precept to an unprecedented high.

Joe Tray, chairman of the Stratton St Margaret Parish Council, used the parish’s Annual Assembly, held at Grange Leisure on Tuesday night, to explain why a 27 per cent rise was necessary.

Addressing the gathering of residents and fellow councillors, Coun Tray said: “The parish council had no choice but to increase the precept by 27 per cent this year.

“The borough has decided to parish the entire town and these things necessarily come at a cost.”

Seeking to explain the situation in which the parish council had found itself, Coun Tray said: “The increase of 27 per cent may sound a bit big, but it’s vitally important that we continue to provide the services this parish needs.

"The borough made the decision to hand down services to parish councils and we have had no choice but to take on extra responsibilities.

“And as you look around the parish, the extra grass cutting services, for example, provided by the parish council have had a positive impact on residents.”

Coun Tray declared his faith in the parish council’s ability to provide door to door services more efficiently than the borough council.

In January, the parish council voted to set the precept at £1,165,809 for the average band D household.

This equates to a charge of £168.11 per annum and represents an increase of 27 per cent, which works out at an additional £35.74 per annum or £2.98 per month.

The increase, described by Coun Tray as “necessary”, will go some way to maintaining the parish’s 11 play parks, two allotment sites, leisure centre, coffee shop, bar and community hall.

Coun Tray said that major works were needed to be carried out at Grange Leisure, the home of the parish council, because the building is “starting to show its age”.

Half way through Tuesday’s meeting, one resident congratulated the parish council on the state of the grass verges, saying he couldn’t remember a time when the area’s green spaces had looked better. The sentiment was deeply appreciated by councillors.