Band D in Lichfield city is £2,369.25 this year, up 4.10%. The full A to H charge for all 26 parishes, which precept takes what, and how to challenge your band.
A band D household in Lichfield city pays £2,369.25 in 2026/27. In Weeford, eight miles away and in the same district, the same band D property pays £2,304.72. The £64.53 between them is entirely parish precept.
Lichfield District Council keeps very little of it. Its own share of a band D bill is £201.79, or 8.6 pence in the pound. Staffordshire County Council takes £1,686.42, which is nearly 72 pence in every pound you pay.
Every figure on this page comes from the Council Tax Resolution 2026/27 approved by full council on 24 February 2026, and from the council’s own published charge tables. Both are linked at the foot of the page.
Where the money actually goes
The average band D bill across the district rose from £2,259.21 to £2,351.90 this year, an increase of £92.69 or 4.10%. The rises were not evenly shared:
| Precept | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lichfield District Council | £197.85 | £201.79 | 1.99% |
| Staffordshire County Council | £1,621.71 | £1,686.42 | 3.99% |
| Staffordshire Commissioner, police and crime | £287.57 | £302.57 | 5.22% |
| Staffordshire Commissioner, fire and rescue | £91.77 | £96.77 | 5.45% |
| Sub-total before parish | £2,198.90 | £2,287.55 | 4.03% |
| Parish councils, average | £60.31 | £64.35 | 6.70% |
| Total | £2,259.21 | £2,351.90 | 4.10% |
The district council took the smallest rise of the five at 1.99%, which works out at £3.94 a year. It describes that as £3.88 a week for its own services. Police and fire took the largest percentages, both from flat cash rises of £15.00 and £5.00 at band D.
The full A to H table
Everything except the parish element is the same across the district. These are the four precepts by band:
| Band | District | County | Police | Fire | Total before parish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | £134.53 | £1,124.28 | £201.71 | £64.51 | £1,525.03 |
| B | £156.95 | £1,311.66 | £235.33 | £75.27 | £1,779.21 |
| C | £179.37 | £1,499.04 | £268.95 | £86.02 | £2,033.38 |
| D | £201.79 | £1,686.42 | £302.57 | £96.77 | £2,287.55 |
| E | £246.63 | £2,061.18 | £369.81 | £118.27 | £2,795.89 |
| F | £291.47 | £2,435.94 | £437.05 | £139.78 | £3,304.24 |
| G | £336.32 | £2,810.70 | £504.28 | £161.28 | £3,812.58 |
| H | £403.58 | £3,372.84 | £605.14 | £193.54 | £4,575.10 |
Nobody in Lichfield district pays that last column. Every square metre of the district sits inside a parish, town or city council area, so there is no unparished rate. Add your parish’s share to get your bill.
For the two biggest places, that comes out as:
| Band | Lichfield city | Burntwood | Weeford, the cheapest |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | £1,579.50 | £1,557.78 | £1,536.48 |
| B | £1,842.76 | £1,817.41 | £1,792.56 |
| C | £2,106.01 | £2,077.04 | £2,048.64 |
| D | £2,369.25 | £2,336.67 | £2,304.72 |
| E | £2,895.75 | £2,855.93 | £2,816.87 |
| F | £3,422.26 | £3,375.19 | £3,329.04 |
| G | £3,948.75 | £3,894.45 | £3,841.20 |
| H | £4,738.51 | £4,673.34 | £4,609.44 |
Every parish, ranked
The parish element is the only part of the bill that differs by address, and it ranges from £17.17 at band D in Weeford to £81.70 in Lichfield city.
| Parish | Band D total | Parish share | Parish precept 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lichfield | £2,369.25 | £81.70 | £1,075,013 | 6.00% |
| Wall | £2,364.58 | £77.03 | £16,500 | 15.88% |
| Streethay | £2,364.30 | £76.75 | £77,425 | 6.97% |
| Fradley | £2,361.33 | £73.78 | £141,081 | 4.18% |
| Whittington and Fisherwick | £2,360.18 | £72.63 | £89,466 | 7.00% |
| Elford | £2,358.40 | £70.85 | £23,500 | 9.78% |
| Edingale | £2,358.15 | £70.60 | £20,000 | 14.04% |
| Fazeley | £2,356.81 | £69.26 | £103,734 | 8.86% |
| Shenstone | £2,355.07 | £67.52 | £251,000 | 17.33% |
| Drayton Bassett | £2,349.83 | £62.28 | £29,919 | 4.74% |
| Harlaston | £2,347.93 | £60.38 | £13,223 | down 1.74% |
| Colton | £2,345.29 | £57.74 | £19,950 | 4.73% |
| Armitage with Handsacre | £2,342.71 | £55.16 | £122,355 | down 0.72% |
| Hamstall Ridware | £2,341.28 | £53.73 | £9,000 | 17.64% |
| Mavesyn Ridware | £2,341.12 | £53.57 | £28,875 | 4.36% |
| Hints and Canwell | £2,340.45 | £52.90 | £10,796 | down 0.40% |
| Alrewas | £2,339.04 | £51.49 | £72,383 | 1.60% |
| Clifton Campville with Thorpe Constantine | £2,338.20 | £50.65 | £19,380 | 2.50% |
| Wigginton and Hopwas | £2,337.49 | £49.94 | £43,000 | 5.00% |
| Burntwood | £2,336.67 | £49.12 | £421,990 | 5.01% |
| King’s Bromley | £2,333.93 | £46.38 | £28,235 | 32.40% |
| Longdon | £2,332.23 | £44.68 | £35,603 | 4.55% |
| Curborough and Elmhurst, Farewell and Chorley | £2,329.34 | £41.79 | £11,450 | 0.36% |
| Swinfen and Packington | £2,326.40 | £38.85 | £7,000 | 2.37% |
| Hammerwich | £2,315.18 | £27.63 | £38,700 | 12.60% |
| Weeford | £2,304.72 | £17.17 | £1,765 | 1.95% |
Source: Council Tax Resolution 2026/27, appendices B and C. Multiply the band D total by 6/9 for band A, 11/9 for band E and 2 for band H, or use the parish’s own page linked in the sources below.
Four things stand out in that table.
King’s Bromley took the largest rise in the district, 32.40%. Its precept went from £20,915 to £28,235, taking its band D share from £35.03 to £46.38. It still sits in the cheaper half of the district, which is why the percentage looks alarming and the cash figure does not.
Three parishes cut their band D share. Harlaston is down 1.74%, Armitage with Handsacre down 0.72% and Hints and Canwell down 0.40%. In each case the precept was held flat or nearly flat while the tax base grew, so the same money is spread across more properties.
Shenstone is the outlier among the larger parishes, up 17.33% on a precept that went from £212,000 to £251,000. Hamstall Ridware is up 17.64%, Wall 15.88% and Edingale 14.04%, but those are small parishes where a single project moves the percentage.
Weeford is a rounding error. Its entire precept for the year is £1,765, unchanged from last year, spread across a tax base of 102.8 properties.
Parish precepts across the district total £2,711,343, up from £2,504,072. The district’s tax base rose from 41,522.7 to 42,132.4 band D equivalent properties.
How to check and challenge your band
Your band was set by the Valuation Office Agency, not by the council, and it reflects what your property was worth on 1 April 1991. The council states plainly that it has no power to change it.
| Band | Value at 1 April 1991 |
|---|---|
| A | Up to £40,000 |
| B | £40,001 to £52,000 |
| C | £52,001 to £68,000 |
| D | £68,001 to £88,000 |
| E | £88,001 to £120,000 |
| F | £120,001 to £160,000 |
| G | £160,001 to £320,000 |
| H | More than £320,000 |
Check your own band free on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax band search, or through the council’s own property band search. A challenge goes to the VOA, and the strongest grounds are that a comparable neighbouring property in the same street is in a lower band, or that the property has been materially altered or reduced.
Never pay a company to challenge a band for you. The VOA process is free and you deal with it directly.
If your home is new and has not yet been banded, the council bills you on a provisional band estimated from the purchase price.
Discounts, exemptions and premiums
Single person discount, 25%. A full bill assumes two adults. If you are the only adult, you get a quarter off. Several groups do not count as adults at all when the council counts the household, including full-time students, apprentices, people who are severely mentally impaired, live-in carers, people in prison and anyone for whom child benefit is payable. A student over 18 living at home keeps you eligible until their education finishes. Tell the council within 21 days if your circumstances change, or you can be fined (Lichfield District Council, single person discount).
Severe mental impairment. If every adult in the property meets the three criteria, the property is exempt entirely. A doctor’s certificate is required before applying. A spouse cannot be counted as their partner’s carer, so where one partner qualifies the other claims the single person discount instead.
Carers. An unpaid carer providing at least 35 hours a week, living with the person cared for, who is not their partner or the parent of a child under 18, is disregarded, provided the person cared for receives a qualifying benefit. A paid care worker qualifies on different terms: at least 24 hours a week, paid no more than £44 a week, living in the property, working for or introduced by a local authority, government department or charity. More than one person in a household can be disregarded.
Annexes, 50%. A reduction is available for people living in an annexe who are related to the person liable for the main residence.
Students. A property occupied only by students is exempt, as is a hall of residence.
Bereavement. A property left empty after the sole occupant died is exempt until probate is granted and for up to six months after. A premium can then apply if it stays empty for more than a year after probate.
Council tax support. Lichfield runs a banded working-age scheme with five income bands giving 100%, 75%, 50%, 25% or no discount. Working-age applicants must have under £6,000 in savings, pension-age applicants under £16,000. Support is fixed within a band, so a small income change does not alter the award. Some income is ignored entirely, including carer’s allowance, child benefit, DLA, PIP, and war widows’ and disablement pensions. Households claiming a disability benefit get an £85 disregard, and households in work get up to £50 of earnings disregarded (Lichfield District Council, working age council tax support scheme).
Empty homes premiums. Since 1 April 2025 the district charges, on top of the standard bill (Lichfield District Council, second and empty homes):
- empty up to a year: no premium, standard charge only
- empty 1 to 5 years: double the charge
- empty 5 to 10 years: three times the charge
- empty more than 10 years: four times the charge
Second homes are charged double from the same date, where a property has no resident but is substantially furnished.
Both premiums have regulated exceptions, each capped at 12 months: properties genuinely marketed for sale or let, properties needing major structural repair that makes them uninhabitable, annexes in use as part of the main home, and homes of people posted away by the Ministry of Defence. Kitchen and bathroom refits do not count as major repairs. Lichfield also has local exceptions, including a 12-month waiver for a new owner of a property that already carried a long-term empty premium, and a hardship route requiring three months of bank statements.
One warning if you are hosting under Homes for Ukraine. The council’s page on
Ukraine discounts links a contact address at another authority entirely,
council.tax@canterbury.gov.uk. Use Lichfield’s own revenues team on
01543 308900 or revenues@lichfielddc.gov.uk.
Frequently asked questions
How much is council tax in Lichfield 2026/27?
A band D property in Lichfield city pays £2,369.25 for the year. Band A is £1,579.50 and band H is £4,738.51. Charges are lower in every other parish in the district, down to £2,304.72 at band D in Weeford.
Why is my council tax different from a friend’s in the next village?
Because of the parish precept, which is the only part of the bill that varies by address. Everything else, the county, police, fire and district shares, is identical across the district. The full spread this year is £64.53 at band D.
How much of my Lichfield council tax does the district council keep?
£201.79 of a band D bill, or 8.6%. Staffordshire County Council takes £1,686.42, police £302.57, fire and rescue £96.77 and your parish an average of £64.35.
How much did Lichfield council tax go up in 2026?
The average band D bill rose 4.10%, from £2,259.21 to £2,351.90. The district council’s own element rose 1.99%, the county’s 3.99%, police 5.22% and fire 5.45%.
Can I get money off my council tax in Lichfield?
Yes, if you qualify. A single adult gets 25% off. Low-income households can get 100%, 75%, 50% or 25% off through the local council tax support scheme, subject to a £6,000 savings limit for working-age applicants. Annexe residents get 50%, and properties occupied only by students are exempt.
Sources
- Lichfield District Council, Council Tax Resolution 2026/27, approved 24 February 2026, for the four precepts by band, the year-on-year comparison, appendix B’s parish-by-parish A to H schedule and appendix C’s precept table.
- Lichfield District Council, council tax bands and funding by parish, which carries an A to H table and a precept breakdown for each of the 26 parishes, including Lichfield and Burntwood.
- Lichfield District Council, council tax bands and appeals for the 1991 value ranges and the band checker.
- Lichfield District Council, discounts and exemptions for the single person discount, the carers’ disregard, annexes, bereavement and the other exempt classes.
- Lichfield District Council, second and empty homes for the 200%, 300% and 400% empty premiums, the second home premium and the exceptions.
- Lichfield District Council, working age council tax support scheme for the five income bands and the disregards.
- Valuation Office Agency band search on GOV.UK for checking and challenging a band.
Related: Lichfield bin collection days, parking in Lichfield and Lichfield house prices. Charges are set annually in February and apply from 1 April. Checked 2 September 2026.
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