Council 'bedroom tax' criticised

Purbeck District Council says the money is needed for roads

A Dorset council has been criticised for charging a £1,000 "bedroom tax" on home extensions.

Purbeck District Council has levied the tax - normally reserved for developers - on households, with the assumption that any extension is an extra bedroom.

The council has said the money is necessary to pay for improved local infrastructure, including roads.

But Dorset County Council looks after the roads and MP Jim Knight has labelled it a "money-making scheme".

"People don't see any roads being improved," he said.

"They [residents] are saying it's a 'bedroom tax'."

Mr Knight, the Labour MP for South Dorset, said it was the first time he had heard of a council charging a "bedroom tax" in this way.

It applies to all development that impacts on the local highway network Alan Davies Purbeck District Council

"I don't mind developers having to pay more money because they are building houses to improve roads, etc," he said.

"But it's unfair for residents because it just looks to me and to the people I represent as a money-making scheme for the council rather than it being something that's fair or reasonable.

"They are taking a set of rules aimed at developers building a number of houses and applying it to normal families just trying to improve their house."

Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 requires developers to contribute towards infrastructure.

But one resident, who only gave his name as "Paul", told the BBC's You and Yours programme that he was charged £2,000 for a one up, one down extension, on the assumption that both rooms could be bedrooms.

"We were a little bit shocked to find our extension would cost us an extra £2,000 on top of planning and before starting the building," he said.

"They said it's £1,000 per habitable room, but we only wanted an extension to the lounge downstairs.

"Our architect managed to negotiate it down to £1,000 but we didn't get planning because we had not paid the application fee."

'Roads at capacity'

Dorset County Council has a £30.45m scheme in place to deal with transport in the area over the next 20 years - the Purbeck Transportation Strategy.

It recently published developer contributions guidance, including extensions to existing homes at "£993 per extra bedroom (or room having the capacity to be a bedroom)".

Alan Davies, the development control manager at Purbeck District Council, said the fee was devised from a calculated "trip rate" made by vehicles to and from a property.

He said the fee only applied to extensions that required planning consent and that the council would listen to any appeals.

"It applies to all development that impacts on the local highway network," he said.

"In 2002 we were told by the government that our roads were at capacity and we should not be allowing any more development.

"We came up with a policy that would allow us to pay for highway improvements. We are looking long-term."