Council agrees ambitious 2024/25 budget
Some of the essential services and schemes the budget will help to deliver include:
- Over £200 million to support vulnerable adults and older people with a diverse range of needs and long-term conditions
- Over £180 million to continue improvements to services for children with SEND and for children and families in need of help and protection. This funding will also support fostering and adoption services and children with disabilities
- Continuation of the council’s £100million commitment to improve our roads, which over the past 12 months has seen 212 roads resurfaced and 50,000 potholes filled
- An additional £7.5 million to purchase 10 new fire engines and equipment and £750,000 for a new ariel ladder platform
- Over £2 million to tackle road safety
- £500,000 pothole busting fund to add to our innovative range of tools to tackle potholes
- £24 million for school improvements, including installing solar panels and the delivery of a new special school in Gloucester and a new primary school in Bishops Cleeve
- £2.2 million to increase the frequency and operating hours of county’s bus routes and extend our bookable bus service, The Robin, to three more areas of the county
This will be funded through a council tax increase of 2.99% and an additional 2% through the Adult Social Care Precept to support our work with the most vulnerable adults in the county. Despite this, the council still expects to have one of the lowest council tax levels of any county council. Based on a band D property, this equates to a £6.34 monthly increase.
The council has also looked at how to be more efficient to make the money go further and as a result has identified more than £23 million in efficiencies and additional income.
Cllr Mark Hawthorne said: “I am proud that we have been able to deliver an ambitious budget which will see further investment in our schools, our roads, vital bus services, our fire and rescue service and in the many other services that vulnerable people in our communities rely on each and every day.
"Unlike many other councils who are struggling to balance the books, we haven’t had to make dramatic cuts to the services you rely on each day – in fact, we will increase our spending this year by £42 million. In part this is thanks to our Energy from Waste plant which has not only stopped Gloucestershire’s rubbish going to landfill, it has also generated a £15 million boost to our budget. We have also worked hard to make sure we’re being as efficient as possible and have successfully identify a further £23 million in efficiencies and additional income.
“The budget agreed today will mean 2024 is yet another year where we will deliver for our communities, our businesses, and future generations of this great county.”
Cllr Ben Evans, Leader of the Liberal Democrats Group, said: “I am really pleased that many of our budget amendments have been incorporated into the council’s spending plans for next year. We wanted to do all we could to ensure additional support for residents and to see how we may be able to increase support for our hard-working fosters carers.”
Cllr Cate Cody, Leader of the Green Group, said: “We welcome the support for our budget amendments and look forward to seeing the positive impact of them on the lives of our residents. Natural flood management schemes enhance the local environment, encourage biodiversity and help mitigate the impact of flooding on the county. We are also delighted to be supporting veterans looking to return to work and boosting our community libraries which are vital to their areas.”
Cllr John Bloxsom, Leader of the Labour Group, said: “Through our agreed budget amendments we have been able to secure the continuation of the fund for local youth projects and organisations across the county, who do vital work with young people across the county, to provide assistance to residents who have experienced recent flooding and to install rain gardens in council buildings which will capture rain and surface water and divert this from the drainage system.”
A number of amendments to the budget were proposed, with those below being agreed and therefore adopted as part of the council’s spending plans for 2024/25.
|
Political Group |
Proposal |
Description |
One off or Ongoing |
Cost £000s |
|
Green |
Natural Flood Alleviation Schemes |
NFM using natural processes to slow the flow of water through the catchment. Reprofiling watercourse channels to accommodate more water during storm events, creating small wetland areas and adding meanders and vegetation to help slow flows.
|
One off |
£300,000 |
|
Conservative/Green |
Increased funding for community libraries |
A £2,000 uplift for all Community Libraries to support their invaluable work across the county
|
One off |
£16,000 |
|
Conservative/Green |
A free bus travel for veterans |
A fund to provide free travel voucher booklets for unemployed veterans valid for bus transport
|
One off |
£100,000 |
|
Conservative/Independent |
Keeping children safe on our roads |
A £100,000 revenue and £100,000 capital pot to implement safety improvements at pick up and drop off around schools.
|
One off |
£200,000 |
|
Conservative |
A pothole buster fund
|
To procure a JCB Pothole Pro as part of our pioneering approach to potholes, adding to our innovative range of tools like Road Mender, Jet Patcher, Bobcats, Find and Fix gangs and cold material trials |
One off |
£500,000 |
|
Conservative |
Solar schools fund |
An investment fund to install solar panels at all suitable grant maintained schools in the county to decrease carbon emissions and school energy bills. |
One off |
£2 million |
|
Liberal Democrats |
Increased funding of Public Rights of Way |
|
One off |
£25,000 |
|
Liberal Democrats |
Increased funding for the Lydney flood scheme |
|
One off |
£25,000 |
|
Liberal Democrats |
Freezing residents on-street car parking for a year |
|
One off |
£82,000 |
|
Liberal Democrats |
Work up the governance arrangements and criteria for a scheme to allow foster carers to make improvements to their home to take extra children |
|
One off |
£20,000 |
|
Liberal Democrats |
Additional money for road safety focused on driver education concentrating on issues around highest numbers of KSI's |
|
One off |
£100,000 |
|
Labour |
Youth Fund |
This proposal would continue the Youth Fund which in 2023/24 has provided £3k per County Division for local youth projects and organisations who work or support young people. This fund will expire on 31 March 2024 unless included in the 2024/25 budget. |
One off |
£159,000 |
|
Labour |
Flooding Education and Advice |
Provision of assistance and advice for residents who have been affected by flooding to help them access support via the Property Flood Resilience repair grant scheme. |
One off |
£150,000 |
|
Labour |
Rain Garden Installation |
Installation of rain gardens in consultation with Gloucestershire Wildlife and other organisations at locations (GCC buildings) that can act as sustainable drainage by capturing roof water and other ‘clean’ surface water and diverting this from the drainage system.
|
One off |
£300,000 |
For more information on the budget view our video here.
ENDS