TOWN hall bosses are set to freeze council tax next year, despite a Government grant being slashed by £1.6million.

Tendring Council will have a zero per cent increase in its share of the overall council tax bill for 2014/5.

It means the average household will continue to pay £147.64 a year to the district council.

The authority has already been told its grant from central Government will be just £3.5million next year.

Council finance boss Alan Goggin said despite the cuts, the council’s cabinet had decided to help residents with the rising cost of living by freezing council tax.

“The challenge of setting a balanced budget is getting harder and harder every year,” he said.

“We are trying to deliver millions of pounds of savings while trying to maintain the quality of the services we offer.

“We have saved £27million over the last five years. The budget when we first took control was £22million a year.

“The budget we now have is £14.5million. If your salary was £22,000 a year and was reduced to £14,500, you would have to have a good look at your household budget and the things you took for granted.”

Council leader Mick Page added that council staff had worked hard to find savings without cutting front-line services.

“We are not putting the cost of any services or charges up,” he pledged.

“There will be no increase in costs to residents in Tendring – and they are still getting the same services. The only difference is the way in which we are delivering services.

Mr Page said he hoped the council would be “self-sufficient” by 2019 and would not need to reply on Government grants.

Instead, the council would generate more income from investing in areas suchbuilding council houses and improving sports facilities.

The budget will be put before a meeting of the full council on February 10.