Charges for hiring Oxford Town Hall are to rise from April to raise another £17,000 a year for the city council.

The executive board agreed on Monday (November 11) to the increases, the first since 2000.

There will be a 7.5 per cent increase for the use of the Main Hall, Assembly Room, Old Library and meeting rooms. Hourly fees of £125, £75, £75, and £27.50 will rise to £130, £80, £80, and £29.50 respectively.

A wide range of community groups which get free use of meeting rooms from Monday to Friday, 6pm to 9.30pm, will now only be welcome on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The Oxford and District Trades Union Council, which has met on Monday nights at the town hall for many years, has protested about the rise.

The group's secretary Sue Tibbles said in a letter to town hall manager David Clark: "We believe that restricting the free evening use of a meeting room on weekdays to Tuesdays and Thursdays will disenfranchise people from attending meetings even more.

"Many of our delegates are members of other groups that meet at the town hall rooms throughout the week, so we would cite overlapping membership as one of our reasons not to restrict meetings to two evenings a week."

Mr Clark said: "We will still be able to accommodate 14 free meetings a week."

Green city councillor Craig Simmons added: "I think these increases are short-sighted because fewer groups will use the town hall. Ultimately it could lead to a loss of revenue."

The use of the town hall is discouraged after 10pm, but a £250 hourly fee is being reduced to £150. The 70 per cent discount for registered charity and community organisations is being reduced to 60 per cent for fundraising activities and 50 per cent for non-fundraising activities. The reduction in discount will mean the cost of a four-hour reservation of the main hall rises from £156 to £208 and £260 respectively.

Some organisations will continue to be granted free use of the town hall.

They are:

Citizens Advice Bureau

City of Oxford Charities

Committee for Over-70s Tea Party

Headington Quarry Folk Dance Club

Oxford Carers Forum

Oxford City Duke of Edinburgh's Awards

Oxford Gang Show

Oxford International Women's Festival

Oxford Pensioners' Action Group

Twinning associations