Investing in our Communities - Council Publishes Budget Proposals in Challenging Local and National Conditions
Cheshire West and Chester Council has published its budget proposals to invest in communities as part of its commitment to build a stronger future.
This is set against challenging national and local economic conditions, especially in core services such as social care and special educational needs. The budget proposals builds on the Council’s track record of targeting resources into areas of need, whist delivering significant efficiencies over many years to remain financially sustainable The report sets out a balanced budget for 2025-26, proposed plans for 2026 - 2029 with a cumulative funding gap of £4.1 million over this period and a longer- term capital investment and expenditure programme totalling £415 million for 2025 – 2029.
Councillor Carol Gahan, Cabinet Member for Legal and Finance Services at the Council, said:
In putting this challenging budget together we have maintained our key principles, namely: ensuring the Council’s money and wider resources are delivering services that our residents have told us is a priority for them. The Council has received an increase of £13.5m in grant funding from Central Government this year which has been welcomed but is not sufficient to meet all the additional demands and cost pressures we face with an ageing population and more children and families in crisis. Our plans deliver a substantial package of investment to protect vital services for residents and businesses across west Cheshire. They consider the views and feedback from the public consultation we ran on our budget proposals in late 2024, with significant investment of £88m over the next four years into social care for children and adults and to meet special educational needs and disabilities for children and young people. The budget plans also fund preventive services to support people earlier; ensuring we maximise opportunities for generating revenue and transforming how services are delivered. There will be support to residents in need and to businesses impacted by economic pressures, more suitable accommodation to support the homeless and rough sleepers and continued funding to support anti-poverty initiatives. Alongside our statutory responsibilities to deliver children's and adult social care, a key area that our residents want us to protect is transport, roads, footpaths and cycle routes and £105m will be spent on transport infrastructure over the next four years. In addition, the Council is investing £1.2m into Street Care equipment, supported by an additional £0.2m annually for enhanced street cleansing and grounds maintenance operations.
To enable this scale of investment the Council has set out plans to continue to deliver efficiencies and additional income totalling £29 million for the next financial year. This builds on longer term programmes to deliver improvements, deliver efficiencies and, where possible, to build on the strengths and contributions of residents and communities.
The budget includes a Council Tax increase of 4.99% - made up of a 2.99% increase in Basic Council Tax and a 2% Adult Social Care Precept. Research indicates this is the case for the majority of authorities across the country.
This increase will result in a Band D Council Tax bill for residents of £1,978.09, which is an increase of £1.81 per week from the previous year. Over 60% of properties in the borough are in Band A-C, so will see a lower increase in their bill than this.
As part of the £415 million capital investment over the next four years, the Council will continue to deliver regeneration in the borough’s market towns and city, alongside a focus on sustainability with a focus on greener communities and securing significant external funding to support business growth and other priorities. This will be complemented over the next four years through the opportunity of Regional Devolution.