HASLEMERE Town Council will not increase the precept for 2014/15 despite being hit by a hefty bill for the repair of the town hall roof.

Members agreed to maintain the precept at £221,000 rather than raise it in order to pay the £80,000 cost of repairing the roof, which is riddled with woodworm and has dormant dry rot.

Instead, the repairs will be funded by a long-term loan from the public works loan board set at £6,000 per annum, a meeting of the full council decided last week.

For full story, see this week's Haslemere Herald.