A PROPOSAL to allow Oxfordshire County Council to raise an additional two per cent in council tax to help fund vital social care has been given a cautious welcome by its leaders.

The authority can put up council tax by two per cent, without needing to consult the public in a referendum.

But now Chancellor George Osborne has indicated he will allow local authorities to increase the tax by an additional two per cent to boost social care funding.

Further details are expected in tomorrow’s Autumn Statement.

A four per cent rise would increase the county council element of the bill for band B and D homes by about £49.30 and raise an additional £6m.

The council is facing £52.6m worth of cuts on top of £290m it has planned since 2010. Current proposals include closing Oxfordshire’s 44 children’s centres and seven early intervention hubs to save £8m.

County council leader Ian Hudspeth said: “Any additional funding we get from any source is welcome. It would mean we would not have to make as many cuts.

“But we really need to see the terms and conditions of what the chancellor is proposing.

“We are living longer, which is fantastic news, but it means we need more social care as well.

“Reduced funding over the past six or seven years has meant we have had to make difficult decisions in this area.”

Mr Hudspeth would not say if he would vote for the additional two per cent, adding he wanted to know more detail.

He said it was not yet clear if the social care levy was a one-off, or whether it could be an option on an annual basis.

Deputy leader Rodney Rose added that councillors would have to vote in February whether to approve the additional increase.

He added: “No councillor is signed up to cut services – this could lessen the cuts. I personally would take any two per cent we could possibly get.”

But Mr Rose warned the proposed increase in social care funding would not necessarily mean the cuts to children’s centres would be reduced.

Save Oxfordshire’s Children’s Centres campaign spokeswoman Jill Huish said: “We would want any additional funding to go to children’s centres, and other frontline services.

“It looks like central government is recognising the danger of councils’ making cuts to frontline services in social care.”

County council spokesman Paul Smith said: “Like all councils we would need full confirmation of the actual proposal from the chancellor, complete with background detail, before beginning to make calculations.

“Crucially, we would also need to see this proposal in its wider funding context – alongside information about grant funding from central government to councils and other funding streams.”