A TOWN council has had to raise its precept by £30,000 to help cover the cost of maintenance to community buildings.

Wotton Town Council will put up its precept for the 2008/09 financial year to £203,000 - an increase of £29,000 on last year's figure of £174,000.

The rise will cost the average Band B homeowner in Wotton approximately £95 a year, £12 up on last year's rates.

Chris Galbraith, mayor of Wotton, said: "The auditors' report indicated that our reserves were not large enough.

"We came to this decision after considerable discussion and with regret."

Blame for the rise has also been levelled at the town council's responsibility for various buildings in the town, including the civic centre, the town hall, the Chipping Hall, the police station and the heritage centre.

Most of the maintenance of these buildings is paid for by the tenants, but if major repairs are needed it becomes the responsibility of the town council to pay.

Wet rot has recently been identified in the floor of the Chipping Hall. The cost of the repair is not yet known but is expected to run into thousands.

In response to the precept rise, the town council has vowed to set up a working party in the New Year to look carefully at how it spends its money.

Cllr Roger Carter, a town councillor, said: "It is a huge hike. The council needs to have a radical review of how things are done.

"The cost of everything is rising, from food to transport, but the council needs to turn round and become more slick."

The town council has already started to refuse applications for grants and donations from local groups and charities but is honouring any past offers of funding.

Cllr June Cordwell, another town councillor, added: "I am not happy the precept has gone up so much so quickly. The council cannot keep giving money away left, right and centre."