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Residents could see £800 added to their annual bills from April 2027

Households in one London borough could be hit with what would be England's biggest council tax increase on record.

The plans could set a new national benchmark and add hundreds of pounds to residents' annual bills.

Wandsworth Council is discussing a rise of up to 160 per cent from April 2027, according to Politics Home.

The increase would apply to Wandsworth Council's share of the bill rather than the separate Greater London Authority charge. It could add around £800 to the average household's annual bill.

If approved, the increase would dwarf the previous record of nine per cent, which Worcestershire County Council introduced last year after receiving special permission from the Government.

The proposals are still being discussed internally and no final decision has been made. Both Wandsworth Council and the Conservative Party have declined to comment.

The south London borough returned to Conservative control in May after Labour lost power in the local elections.

Wandsworth currently has the lowest council tax in the country, with residents paying around 0.1 per cent of their property's value each year.

The main council tax element was frozen for a fourth consecutive year in 2026, although the overall bill increased after other charges were added.

However, the borough is facing a serious financial squeeze as changes to the way central government funding is distributed are expected to cut its allocation significantly.

The Government says the reforms are needed to move more money towards deprived areas and ensure funding is "truly based on need".

Wandsworth has warned that it faces a growing budget gap, while the wider funding changes are expected to hit several London boroughs particularly hard.

If the reported increase goes ahead, the new rate is expected to be frozen for the remainder of the council's term.

For Wandsworth, this means grant funding is expected to shrink by approximately 40 per cent.

London MPs have cautioned that these reforms will leave capital boroughs especially vulnerable to mounting cost pressures, particularly around adult social care and homelessness services.

If approved, the increase would take effect from April 2027, with rates then held steady for the remainder of the current council term.

Local Conservatives have been keen to emphasise that even after such a dramatic percentage rise, Wandsworth residents would continue to pay among the lowest council tax in England.

The actual impact on household bills would also be smaller than the headline figure suggests. Roughly half of what residents pay goes towards a separate precept for the Mayor of London, which would remain unaffected by any increase set by the borough council.

Westminster Council, which has been granted similar permission to raise tax above five per cent without holding a referendum over the next two years, recently cautioned that it would need a 200 per cent increase simply to maintain current spending levels.

Simon Hogg, who led the council as Labour's leader until May 2026, was scathing in his response. "It beggars belief that Wandsworth Conservatives are planning Britain's biggest ever council tax increase," he told PoliticsHome.

He accused the Tories of manufacturing a financial crisis to justify austerity-style cuts. "The Conservatives are pretending the council has run out of money so they can bring in austerity policies.

They've already cut domestic abuse services, scrapped the youth bus and axed new council homes for 400 local people," he said.

The broader picture across the capital is equally stark. A London Councils spokesperson warned that "it is now almost impossible" for councillors to "protect frontline services for their communities" given that "funding from central government remains wholly insufficient to meet these growing demands".