Council tax payers in Tonbridge and Malling now know what they will be paying in the next financial year starting in April.

Councillors voted unanimously at their meeting last Tuesdayto implement a 3% increase - which is the maximum they can endorse without seeking a public referendum.

It means that the so-called average Band D home will pay £231.23 a year towards the services provided by the borough council, which include waste collection, recycling, planning, parks, leisure and food safety.

The figure is an increase of £6.73 a year.

In addition, those who live in "special areas" will also pay a precept to their town or parish councils, collected through the council tax. These fees are set by the local councils and on average are increasing by 4.06% to £70.80 a year.

But that's not the end of the story.

Residents will also have to pay Kent County Council for the services that it provides such as roads, education and social care. KCC has increased its precept by 4.99%, which equates to £1,534.23 for a Band D house.

Then there is the contribution toward Kent Police, a figure set by the Police and Crime Commissioner. That is going up by 6.57% to £243,15 for each Band D house.

Finally, there is funding for the Kent Fire and Rescue Authority, which is increasing by 6.01% to £87.30 for a Band D home.

Which means that the average household will be asked to pay £2,166.71 in total.

That is an increase of 4.9% per cent, which although many will find unwelcome, is below the current official inflation rate of 10.1%.

Presenting his budget to the council, Cllr Martin Coffin, the cabinet member for finance, warned that although the council was in a better position than it had expected to be this time last year, when it was facing a funding gap of £3m, there was still a shortfall of £1.9m which it had to find in extra savings (or extra revenue) over the next three years.

He praised the council staff for improvements which had seen a recent reduction in the cost of providing emergency accommodation for the homeless, which Cllr Coffin said had been "astronomical."

A survey on the prescribed national count day had found only one person sleeping rough on the streets of Tonbridge.

Business rates has also risen, thanks in part to the redevelopment of the former Aylesford Newsprint site, and the council's pension fund was in a far happier position and expected soon to be fully funded.

However, there had been difficulties.

The council's waste contract, which had fees index-linked to inflation, had seen an extra £640,000 in costs over the budgeted figure, and overall the council's budget remained in the "red risk" sector because of the uncertainties over future revenue performance, inflationary pressures and the uncertainty around many government policies.

Overall, the council will receive £5,397m in grant funding from the government next year - an above-inflation increase of 10.2%.

However, that not did not stop Cllr Coffin and other party spokesmen bemoaning the fact that for Tonbridge and Malling the the key element of government funding, known as the Settlement Funding Assessment, was the lowest of any of the 12 councils in Kent, both in overall and per capita terms.

Tonbridge and Malling will receive £2.52m, which equates to £19.07 per head. Thanet council on the other hand is to be given £39.81 per head.

However, Tonbridge and Malling is still budgeting to add £1.35m to its reserves.

Cllr Coffin said: "Everyone is feeling the pressure of rising prices and the council is no exception."

He said: "In an ideal world we wouldn’t have to increase our slice of council tax for the coming year, but the reality is that in a climate of rising costs such a move would have meant cutting services.

"I am pleased, however, that we’ve been able to keep the increase well below the current rate of inflation.

"While this will mean less income for the council in real terms, I’m confident that by continuing our efforts to cut costs and increase efficiency, we’ll continue to serve our residents well.’

Cllr Antia Oakley (Lib Dem) said that by setting a 3% cap without a referendum, the government was "in effect setting the council tax for us - and for the rest of the country."

Cllr Mark Hood (Green) pointed out that despite the coming year's increase in Government funding: "We are still receiving £37 per resident less than we did a decade a go."

He added: "This is a policy of managed decline."

Cllr Mike Taylor (Independent Alliance) praised the budget: He said: "We will fulfil our statutory obligations, avoid debt and keep within the cap."

The council leader Matt Boughton (Con) commended the way the budget had been prepared with cross-party input.

He said: "There is just one budget on the table, no amendments have been tabled.

"This is the best budget for the residents of Tonbridge and Malling."