Yet another Kent local authority has voted to increase its council tax by the maximum permitted under the law.

Members of Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council voted to raise their proportion of council tax by 3%.

Any increase over 3% requires agreement from a referendum held locally.

The move means that a resident in a Band D house - considered to be the “average-sized” property - will pay £245.30 a year toward the services which the borough provides, such as waste collection, recycling, planning, parks and leisure.

It is a rise of £7.14 over last year.

The rise exactly matches the Bank of England’s current recorded rate of inflation.

The leader of the council Matt Boughton (Con) said: “I can assure everyone that we are devoted to spending every single penny of the money that you are forced to give us in the best posssible way that we can.”

However, that is not all that householders will pay.

When their council tax bills land on the doorstep in April, they will include charges for Kent County Council, which provides services such as education and highways, as well as charges for Adult Social Care, Kent Police, and the Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue Authority.

In addition, many residents will pay a precept to support their local parish or town council.

Together these take the bill for the average Band D household to £2,374 - which is a rise of 4.79%.

This is because all the other authorities have set inflation-busting increases - with KCC’s bill (including adult social care) rising by 4.99%, the police’s bill by 5.47% and the KFRS’s by 5.51%

Parish and town council precepts are set locally and they vary, but taken overall the average increase is 3.04%.

What residents will actually pay varies according to the size of their property: those in the lowest Band A category pay 2/3 of the bill (ie £1,583), while those in the highest Band H category pay double (ie £4,749.)

Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council’s income from council tax for the coming year is forecast to be £13.2m, up from £12.7m last year.

The council says it is still facing a funding gap of £2.8m over the next 10 years, which it is looking to meet via efficiency savings.

Cllr Kim Tanner (Con), the council’s cabinet member responsible for finance, said: “Our disciplined approach to efficiency has helped us to keep the increase in council tax as low as we can, once again.

“With the rising cost of living still impacting many people, we’re striving every day to continue delivering good quality services, from regular bin collections to housing support, sustainable building programmes and innovative projects supporting local business.

“While many local councils struggle to balance the books, we are pleased to be in a position of financial resilience with good overall performance. This allows us to continue to invest, plan and deliver for the residents of Tonbridge and Malling, today and in the future, with exciting plans ahead.”

To date, every authority in Kent, apart from Dartford, that has set its budget has opted for the maximum increase permitted.