Parks and flood defences among services to benefit as Fylde council tax rise approved

Fylde Council approved a council tax rise of 1.99 per cent, equivalent to £4.28 per year on a Band D property, for the new financial year.

It’s the third year in succession that the Fylde Council tax rate has risen by that percentage.

Coun Karen Buckley, leader of Fylde Council, said: “This is a budget which will help strengthen Fylde and prepare it for a bright new year as we exit the Covid-19 pandemic.“In considering this year’s budget, we were keenly aware of the rising costs of living faced by our residents, and so we resolved not to add to this burden by implementing the maximum potential increase.

“We will be investing £79,000 towards implementing the recommendations of our Flooding and Drainage Working Group, following the completion of their 12-month long review earlier in the year, to help protect our residents from problems caused by flooding and surface water.“Our projects to improve our play areas have already begun, with new safety surfacing complete at several playgrounds, and our rolling programme will bring even more thanks to a budget allocation of £100,000.”Coun Buckley added: “We have also agreed to fund numerous capital items to further enhance our offering for visitors, with £13,000 allocated for a new petanque court (at Lowther Gardens in Lytham), £208,000 for renovated public conveniences, and £125,000 for the rejuvenation of the Blackpool Road North Playing Field Play Area.“These perfectly complement our existing projects, such as the plans underway for the new Wind Sports Centre at North Beach, to ensure Fylde has a wealth of high-quality amenities.”A sum of £79,000 has also been approved for the replacement of the town centre CCTV systems (in St Annes, Lytham and Kirkham), allowing both residents and visitors to feel safer while shopping.The agreed funding is on top of existing commitments to regenerate Kirkham town centre as well as implement improvements to Lytham and St Annes centres.