Fire precept
From 2025/2026, the Mayor will be responsible for setting the local fire ‘precept’ – the amount people pay through their council tax for fire and rescue services.
On this page
David Skaith, the Mayor for York and North Yorkshire, is asking for your views before setting the amount that goes to North Yorkshire Police and, separately, to North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service from your council tax bill. This is known as a Precept.
The Mayor has to balance council tax increases against the growing demands for both emergency services.
Addressing years of underinvestment in North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is a high priority for the Mayor.
Any increase in funding must be thought through carefully. Before setting the levels of precept for the two services, the Mayor would like to know your views on the possible options.
- The survey will take no longer than 7 minutes to complete.
- The survey will close at 10am on Monday 20 January 2025.
- The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner has set the Band D Fire Element of the Council Tax within North Yorkshire for 2024/25 at £83.02
- This is an increase of £2.41, or 2.99%, over the 2023/24 level.
Your contribution through your council tax 2024/25
| 2023/24 | 2024/25 | Increase per year | Increase per week | |
| Property Band | £ | £ | £ | pence |
| A | 53.74 | 55.35 | 1.61 | 3 |
| B | 62.70 | 64.57 | 1.87 | 4 |
| C | 71.65 | 73.80 | 2.14 | 4 |
| D | 80.61 | 83.02 | 2.41 | 5 |
| E | 98.52 | 101.47 | 2.95 | 6 |
| F | 116.44 | 119.92 | 3.48 | 7 |
| G | 134.35 | 138.37 | 4.02 | 8 |
| H | 161.22 | 166.04 | 4.82 | 9 |
Income and expenditure
Funding for the fire service
| Fire Funding | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
| Funding from Government | £9.5m | £11.7m |
| Council tax precept – your contribution | £25.2m | £26.4m |
| Specific grants | £4.8m | £5.6m |
| Fees, Charges and Partnerships | £0.7m | £1.2m |
| Use of Reserves | £1.2m | £0.3m |
| Total funding | £41.4m | £45.2m |
Fire budget breakdown
| Fire Budget | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
| Firefighter pay | £24.0m | £26.3m |
| Control and support staff | £5.4m | £6.0m |
| Supplies and Services | £3.9m | £4.0m |
| Premises and equipment | £2.4m | £2.6m |
| PFI | £1.7m | £1.9m |
| Transport | £1.0m | £1.1m |
| Capital financial charges | £2.1m | £2.1m |
| Other costs | £0.9m | £1.2m |
| Total spending plan | £41.4m | £45.2m |
How your money will be spent
Your precept will contribute towards:
- An increase in the number of prevention focused posts in North Yorkshire Fire
and Rescue Service. - Investment into the on-call firefighter model to improve recruitment, retention
and increase the availability of on-call fire engines. - Continued investment in fire stations to ensure they are fit for purpose.
- Replacing the oldest fire engines with newer models.
- Increasing costs of gas, electricity, fuel, insurance, and other services linked to inflation.
Precept leaflet
Correspondence with the Police Fire and Crime Panel
- Police Fire and Crime Panel’s report to PFCC – Police & Fire precepts 2024/25
- Precept 2024-25 – Letter to PFCP from Commissioner Zoe