Council tax payers will soon be asked if they would volunteer to pay more to support local priorities.

Bath and North East Somerset Council is following the lead of Westminster Council, which has generated £1million in voluntary contributions since 2018.

The funding is spent helping young people, extra support for rough sleepers, and tackling isolation and loneliness across all age groups.

Residents in Bath and North East Somerset are also keen to help, and if every household in the top council tax bracket paid double, £1million could be raised in a single year.

Members voted yesterday (July 23) to set up a community contribution fund from next year after the details are fleshed out.

Labour group leader, Councillor Robin Moss, who brought the motion, said: "Any opportunity we get to help with council finances is one that we should grab.

"It's certainly not a substitute for a proper central government funding of local governments, nor the current piecemeal announcements that we get very late, but it does have a value in itself setting up a charitable trust that involves local residents and local residents' priorities.

"At the moment any opportunity we get to help support our services is one we should take."

The council backed the motion.

A scrutiny panel will consider if all council tax payers should be asked if they want to contribute or if it should be limited to the top band.

It will also look at how to manage the fund and how to identify local priorities.