Band D in Newbury town is £2,552.33 this year, up 5.2%. Full band A to H tables for Newbury, Thatcham and Hungerford, and what each precept adds to the bill.
A band D home in Newbury town pays £2,552.33 in 2026/27, up £126.61 on last year, a rise of 5.2%.
The figure you will see quoted for “West Berkshire” is usually £2,017.29. That is only the council’s own share. It leaves out the police, the fire service and your town or parish council, and those add between £389.59 and £546.59 depending on where you live. There is no single West Berkshire council tax bill: there are 63 of them, one per parish.
Newbury band A to H
| Band | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | £1,617.14 | £1,701.55 | +£84.41 |
| B | £1,886.67 | £1,985.15 | +£98.48 |
| C | £2,156.19 | £2,268.74 | +£112.55 |
| D | £2,425.72 | £2,552.33 | +£126.61 |
| E | £2,964.77 | £3,119.51 | +£154.74 |
| F | £3,503.82 | £3,686.69 | +£182.87 |
| G | £4,042.86 | £4,253.88 | +£211.02 |
| H | £4,851.44 | £5,104.66 | +£253.22 |
Source: West Berkshire Council’s council tax charges page, which lists every parish separately.
Thatcham and Hungerford
| Band | Thatcham | Hungerford |
|---|---|---|
| A | £1,695.19 | £1,709.25 |
| B | £1,977.73 | £1,994.13 |
| C | £2,260.26 | £2,279.01 |
| D | £2,542.79 | £2,563.88 |
| E | £3,107.85 | £3,133.63 |
| F | £3,672.91 | £3,703.38 |
| G | £4,237.98 | £4,273.13 |
| H | £5,085.58 | £5,127.76 |
Thatcham rose 5.2% and Hungerford 4.9%.
What makes up the bill
Four bodies take a share. For a band D home in Newbury town:
| Precepting body | Band D 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| West Berkshire Council | £2,017.29 | +4.99% |
| Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner | £298.28 | +£15.00, +5.30% |
| Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service | £91.31 | +£5.00, +5.79% |
| Newbury Town Council | £145.45 | +£10.73 |
| Total | £2,552.33 |
West Berkshire’s 4.99% is made of a 2.99% general increase and a 2% adult social care precept, the maximum allowed without a referendum. The council’s figures are set out in its 2026/27 revenue budget council tax paper, which records £2,017.29 as the band D amount. The police and fire figures are confirmed in the statutory council tax determination for the same two precepting authorities.
One thing that puts this year’s rise in context. The same budget paper shows West Berkshire closing a £33.02m funding gap, of which £30m is Exceptional Financial Support requested from central government, with £3.02m taken from reserves. Council tax was raised to the cap and the budget still did not balance without it.
Be careful with the council’s own how we calculate your council tax bill page. Checked in August 2026, it still shows 2025/26 figures and states a band D charge of £1,921.41. That was last year’s West Berkshire element. The band valuation ranges and the A to H ratios on that page are permanent and still correct.
Your parish decides £145 of it
The West Berkshire, police and fire elements are identical across the district. Only the parish precept moves, and it ranges from nothing to £157.87.
| Parish | Band D 2026/27 | Parish share |
|---|---|---|
| Theale | £2,564.75 | £157.87 |
| Hungerford | £2,563.88 | £157.00 |
| Pangbourne | £2,561.37 | £154.49 |
| Newbury | £2,552.33 | £145.45 |
| Thatcham | £2,542.79 | £135.91 |
| Lambourn | £2,511.50 | £104.62 |
| Chieveley | £2,445.27 | £38.39 |
| Aldermaston | £2,435.67 | £28.79 |
| Catmore, Combe, Farnborough and others | £2,406.88 | £0 |
Theale is the most expensive of all 63 parishes, and Newbury is fourth. Six parishes set no precept at all, so a band D home there pays £2,406.88, which is £157.87 less than the same band D home in Theale.
Two parishes cut their precept to zero this year: Midgham, down £59.32 at band D, and Woolhampton, down £56.52. Two others went sharply the other way. Great Shefford added £29.90 and Brightwalton £17.22. The full table is in Appendix A iv of the budget paper.
Checking and challenging your band
Bands were set on property values as at 1 April 1991, not today’s prices. A house built later is slotted in by formula.
| Band | 1991 value |
|---|---|
| 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 | £320,001 and above |
Your band is on your bill, or you can look it up free on the Valuation Office Agency’s service. The VOA sets bands, not the council, so the council cannot change yours.
To challenge it, go to the VOA challenge process. Keep paying while the challenge runs. If you win, the overpayment is refunded.
Discounts, exemptions and premiums
From the council’s reduction, discounts and exemptions page:
- Single person discount: 25% if you are the only resident over 18. Cancel it when another adult moves in
- A 50% annexe discount applies where a self-contained annexe is occupied by a relative of the person liable on the main dwelling
- Adults who are disregarded when counting residents include full-time students, student nurses, apprentices, carers and care workers, people who are severely mentally impaired, permanent hospital patients, people in prison or detention, and under-20s in receipt of Child Benefit
- Severe mental impairment needs a doctor’s certificate of permanent impairment of intelligence and social functioning, plus a qualifying benefit such as Attendance Allowance or the middle or higher rate DLA care component
- Council Tax Reduction is means tested and there is an Exceptional Hardship Fund. Note the council’s page still describes the 2025/26 scheme
Empty and second homes are charged more, not less:
- an empty property pays the full charge unless it is exempt
- empty 1 to 5 years: a 100% premium, so double the bill
- empty 5 to 10 years: 200%
- empty over 10 years: 300%
- second and holiday homes and furnished lets: a 100% premium since 1 April 2025
The one-year clock runs from the date the property first became empty, not from when you bought it. West Berkshire has since agreed an extended two-year period before the premium bites in two cases: properties with age-related sale restrictions, such as over-55s accommodation, and properties forming part of a deceased estate. Both commonly take longer to sell.
Bills for 2026/27 were prepared on 27 February 2026 and posted from 11 March, so any payment made in between will not show on the annual bill.
The council tax team is on 01635 519520.
Also useful: Newbury house prices, Newbury bin collection days and parking in Newbury.
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