Surrey residents are being asked whether they would be prepared to pay a little extra so police teams can continue taking the fight to criminals in our communities.
Police and Crime Commissioner Lisa Townsend said Surrey Police have made incredible strides over the last two years in tackling those issues important to the public.
Burglary and vehicle crime rates are falling, police teams are cracking down on anti-social behaviour, charges for shoplifting have risen by 465 per cent and the overall charge rate has more than doubled in Surrey.
But in order to maintain and build on those improvements over the coming year, the Commissioner says adequate funding is essential to ensure our hard-working police force have the tools for the job.
Council tax survey
Those who live or work in the county are being invited to fill in a brief survey on whether they would support the Commissioner’s proposed increase of a little over £1 extra a month on an average council tax bill for 2026/27.
One of Lisa’s key tasks as Commissioner is to set the Surrey Police budget, which includes determining the level of council tax raised for policing in the county, known as the precept.
This funds the Force together with a grant from central government who also set the maximum precept limit that Commissioners can raise.
Read frequently asked questions here
The Government assumes in their police funding announcements that all Commissioners will increase to the maximum limit.
Police funding
This year’s settlement, which will include the limit, is yet to be announced but it is anticipated that it will be in line with last year at £14 for an average Band D property. This equates to just over £1 a month for a Band D Council Tax payer.
Despite repeated lobbying to Government to get a fairer share of police grant funding, Surrey Police remains one of the most poorly funded forces in the country. As a result an increase in council tax is vital to give the Force the resources it needs to deliver the services residents depend on.
Every pound of precept amounts to an extra half-a-million pounds in the policing budget.
The Commissioner said that the contributions the Surrey public make through their council tax is “absolutely crucial” and is continuing to pay dividends for communities.
Charges more than double
The number of charges across the board has more than doubled and 40 per cent more crimes have been solved.
Burglary rates have reduced by 14 per cent over the last year while vehicle crime is down by 36 per cent. The number of charges for rape have doubled. You can find out more on the Commissioner’s Data Hub.
Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey Lisa Townsend said: “I vowed last year that the contributions Surrey residents make through their council tax would go towards what policing does best – fighting crime in our local communities, getting tough on offenders and protecting people.
“The improvements we have seen have been nothing short of incredible.
“Incredible”
“More criminals are being put before the courts and taken off our streets. Burglary and vehicle crime rates have fallen dramatically whilst charges for shoplifting and violence against women and girls have risen hugely
“This has all been made possible by the contributions you, the Surrey public, make through your council tax contributions.
“It is always really tough asking the Surrey tax-payer to pay more money, particularly in the current financial climate. But my job is to ensure our local policing teams remain properly funded in the face of some tough financial challenges.
“The reality is that despite repeated lobbying, the Government’s funding for policing in Surrey is simply inadequate, which is why your contributions remain so crucial to the service the Force is able to provide. I am afraid that an increase of some kind will be needed again this year to ensure that drastic cuts to our workforce can be avoided.
Savings to be made
“The Force is making every effort to find efficiencies across the board to ensure we provide the very best value for money for our residents. But they still must find in the region of £?m in savings over the next four years.
“I want to ensure we build on the fantastic progress already made, continue to tackle those crimes important to our residents and invest in those fantastic services in the county that provide truly life-changing support to victims of crime in Surrey.
“It is important to me to find out what Surrey residents think and whether they would be willing to pay a little extra to support our policing teams again this year. So I would ask everyone to take a minute to fill out our brief survey and give me their views.”
The council tax survey will close at midnight on 12 January 2026. For more information visit our dedicated webpage.