The price of cremations and burials in Colchester could get more expensive as councillors are set to vote on increasing the cost of services.

Colchester Council’s cabinet will vote on raising costs for some council services from April 1, 2022, including cremations by £85 and burials by £34.

This would represent a 10.5 per cent rise in the cost of cremations and a 5 per cent rise in the cost of burials.

Fixed Penalty Notices for flytipping and littering would also increase by £50 to £200, according to council documents.

The report said “significant budget gap” in the authority’s finances has been created by the coronavirus pandemic.

The report continues to recommend councillors approve “reasonable increases” in fees and charges.

A section reads: “Our Bereavement Services are high quality and well loved.  “The service they provide is in line or better than that offered by other commercial and public sector providers. 

“The income generated is important and is reinvested into all the other services the Council provides, many of which are for the most vulnerable people of Colchester. 

“Without this income we would have to cut some of these services, and we need to protect and generate more income to help balance our budgets in future years and cover soaring prices and uncertainties.”

In a breakdown of the charges, the report continues to state this is a “very small part” of overall funeral costs, which average over £4,000.

The council expects to raise £1.6million from cemetery and crematorium charges, the report says.

Other fees expected to rise include those for pest control services.

These would rise to £74.20 for rodents, £92.70 for cockroaches and tropical ants, £193.65 for bedbugs, £68.35 for wasps and hornets, £86.50 for fleas and £28.85 for a call out with no treatment. All of these figures include VAT.

Recycling and trade services would increase by an average by 2.5 per cent.

The report said: “In response to an increase in environmental contraventions by the public, it is deemed that a more severe penalty will help support a change in behavior around such things as fly tipping and littering.

“Recycling and trade services being considered for an increase include business and school refuse, recycling hires and special collections.”

According to the report, most fees that are increasing will have a “guidance uplift” of 2.53 per cent, which is the average rate of increase in council tax over the last three years.

There is also a £900,000 grant from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to cover the council’s income losses between April-June 2021.

But according to the report this will not cover all the income losses and no grant is being offered for losses from July onwards.

This year’s budget for sales fees and charges is around £13million, £3million less than last year.

Additionally, losses are expected to continue into 2022-2023, particularly from car parking income, commercial rents, and from sport and leisure facilities.

The cabinet will meet tomorrow, November 17, to vote on whether to increase the fees.