Budget Consultation overview

Have your say on our budget consultation!

Dear resident,

As the new leader of the county council, I am really pleased to tell you more about our spending plans for the next financial year.

Due to some strong financial management over recent years, I am pleased to say that we remain financially stable and that our spending plans for next year include a net increase of £32.7 million compared to last year.

This means that we can continue to be ambitious in our plans for the years ahead, which include significant investment in our priority areas.

The spending plans set out in the booklet and in the fuller budget documents demonstrates that as a financially stable council, whilst not being immune to the pressures faced by other councils, we can take a more positive approach to tackling them. Part of that approach is to continue our commitment to always seek ways to do things better, to make sure we are getting the most out of all available funding. As such we have identified £24.5 million of additional income, savings and efficiencies for 2025/26 that will help us to remain financially stable at the same time as investing in a better future for Gloucestershire. We have a renewed focus on transformation and improvement right across the council and plans in place that will mean we will be able to continue this approach in future years.

When setting the level of funding they will provide to councils, the Government assumes that councils will apply an increase to council tax and to the adult care precept. Therefore, next year we are proposing to increase council tax by 2.99%, raising £16.5 million to help fund vital services and will apply a 2% increase to the adult precept to raise £7.8 million specifically to support our work with the most vulnerable adults in the county.

This will see our proportion of council tax bills increase by £6.65 per month for a band D property. I know everyone’s finances are already stretched but without applying these increases we would not be able to deliver the services many people rely on.

We have tried hard to balance the financial strain we are all already feeling against the need to keep investing in services for the most vulnerable and to support a strong future for the county. We now want to hear what you think, whether you agree with our plans or if there are things you would change.

It’s not to say that we will always be able to make the changes you suggest but I can assure you that your views will help to inform the decisions we take.

To make sure your views are included as part of the council’s decision-making process, please complete the survey no later than 5pm on 10 January 2025.

Stephen Davies
Leader of the Council