The first step in arriving at a charge per property is to calculate a Band D tax base for each of the districts and city council. This is calculated by the district and city councils themselves and is achieved by multiplying the estimated number of properties within each band by the 'Band D Ratio', adjusting for households that get discounts, and adding the results together.
The resultant Band D tax base for each district or city council are then amalgamated to produce a total Band D tax base for Cambridgeshire County Council.
Next, the council has to calculate how much it needs to raise from council tax. Normally, this will depend on how much the council plans to spend on providing services to the people of Cambridgeshire and how much of this will be supported by central government grants and external income.
Of the 2025-26 total gross spend, excluding schools, of £1,017 million, the council will raise £419 million from council tax (council tax requirement of £421 million plus a surplus on the collection fund of £1.5 million). The council tax requirement figure is divided by the tax base of 247,475.2 to give a council Band D Council Tax of £1,700.64 for 2025-2026. This amounts in a 4.99% rise in the County Council element of Council Tax compared to 2024-2025.
For 2025-2026, the County Council's share of council tax includes a levy of £10,048,640 issued by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) for the delivery of transport services.
You can find further information about the service delivered on the CPCA website.
