Seaford businesses will save thousands of pounds after councillor takes action on rates

4.02.15pm UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 10th Jan 2008

Councillor Carolyn Lambert is pleased with the savings local businesses will make and wants the scheme to be extended to other towns in the area.

Seaford business are benefiting after local campaigner Carolyn Lambert took action to reduce their bills. Over the next three years local businesses will save over £24,000 after Councillor Lambert trialled a walkabout approach to help businesses calculate if they are paying too much in rates.

Seaford Councillor Carolyn Lambert says "I am delighted with the result. We've managed to save local businesses over £8,000 per year for the next three years. Local businesses are extremely important for the future of Seaford. I took this action to ensure that they are not paying over the odds in rates. As a small business, if you're paying too much it becomes very difficult to run profitably."

Carolyn Lambert trialled the walkabout approach with Lewes District Council's Revenue Manager Ian Morris, and this success means it is likely that the approach will now be used in other towns in the district.

Carolyn adds "This method worked in Seaford, so we will now try it in Lewes and other surrounding towns. Local shops and other businesses bring employment and keep money in the town. This is important if we want to give young people the opportunity to stay in the area. Local businesses also create a sense of community and identity for a town, so we should be doing all we can to support them."

Local MP Norman Baker has congratulated Carolyn Lambert on the success of the initiative.

Norman says: "This is an excellent initiative from a local councillor and shows the value of having Lib Dem councillors in Seaford."