A COUNCIL is dedicating more than £600,000 to tackle local environmental issues, as it agrees it 2018/19 budget.

Councillors from South Oxfordshire District Council agreed the budget which includes funding over the next three years to create a new team to tackle issues such as fly-tipping, graffiti and grass-cutting.

The council has also raised its share of council tax for the first time in nine years.

This equates to £5 per household for the year.

Some £1.4 million funding was also included in the budget to support community projects, such as improvements to village halls and to charities who provide services to vulnerable people.

The district council will invest £100,000 to help address air quality issues and to identify new green travel initiatives.

'Increased demands' on the council's planning service has also forced the council to make more than £290,000 extra resources available to boost the service.

Cllr Jane Murphy, cabinet member for finance, said: "In this year’s budget we’ve set aside significant funding to boost community projects across the district and launch a new team to allow us to better tackle key environment concerns such as fly-tipping, graffiti and grass cutting.

"Like all authorities across the country, due to reduction in funding available to us, we have had make some tough decisions on this year’s budget. Although we’ve had to raise council tax for the first time in nine years we have kept this rise to an absolute minimum of just £5 over the entire year."