CHARITIES and non-making profit making organisations could be among the first to feel the impact of swingeing cuts being proposed by West Somerset Council.

The groups may have to pay more business rates as the council aims to save almost £28,000 each year in the next two years by making a 75 per cent cut in the amount of discretionary rate relief is hands out.

Currently, the authority gives halls, youth groups, relief and rescue organisations, senior citizens' groups and other community organisations a 20 per cent reduction in business rates.

The saving is on top of the 80 per cent mandatory business rate relief given to them by central Government.

But faced with having to find its own savings of more than £1.2 million in the next two years, the district council is planning to reduce the level of discretionary rate relief from 20 per cent to five per cent.

Non-profit making organisations which do not receive mandatory rate relief could also be hit and see their discretionary rate relief being cut by 75 per cent.

The changes, which are scheduled to come into force on April 1 if approved at next month's meeting of the full council, will affect 28 rural charities, 68 charities in 'rural settlements' and 39 non-profit making organisations.

One registered community amateur sports club would also be hit, by having its 20 per cent discretionary relief cut to five per cent.

But while the registered club would still be eligible for 80 per cent mandatory business rate relief, a number of other sports clubs fall into the non-profit making group and are not able to claim statutory relief.

At Monday's meeting of the council's cabinet, chief executive Adrian Dyer said all the clubs affected would be encouraged to register as community amateur spots clubs to qualify for the Government rate relief.

In a report to the committee he said all levels of mandatory relief were unaffected by the council's proposals, while the 50 per cent discretionary relief offered to rural businesses, including certain food shops, general stores, petrol stations, post offices and pubs would also remain in place during the 2011/12 financial year.

However, cabinet members agreed to push ahead with plans to axe the entire discretionary rate relief scheme for all groups, charities and rural business across the district from April 2012.

Such a move would save the authority around £56,000 a year, although councillors pledged to reinstate the scheme if "external funding arrangements" improved.

As previously reported in the Free Press, the council said it had been left with no choice but to cut grants, services and jobs after receiving a worse than expected central Government grant.

The authority had budgeted for a cut in a specific grant of around 7.1 per cent next year, with more of the same over the next few years.

But the reality was an 8.9 per cent drop on all of the council's spending, meaning the authority was dealt an 13.8 per cent cut in grant aid in real terms - almost double what it had been expecting.

It was the worst settlement figure of all the county's local authorities and was the harshest hand the Government could have dealt.

Council leader Cllr Tim Taylor has already warned the very viability of the authority is at stake without "special consideration and support" from the Government.

Councillors are looking to find an extra £290,000 in savings just to balance the books in the next financial year, having already found savings of £414,000.