Balanced budget set for 2025/26 despite challenges

Despite ongoing financial pressures and low Government funding, Wokingham Borough Council agreed a balanced and prudent budget that safeguards services and invests in the future last night (Thursday 20 February).

The council share of Council Tax will increase by 4.99 per cent (including a two per cent increase specifically for adult social). This is the standard increase expected by the government and is the same as most councils that are not in immediate financial crisis and have had to increase by significantly more.

This increase means Council Tax for the average Band D property (excluding fire service precept, police precept and average parish council precept) will be £1,931.04 (an increase of £7.65 per month on last year).

The council’s budget setting highlights how little it receives from the Government compared with other authorities:

• Wokingham Borough has the lowest funding level in Berkshire
• Wokingham Borough receives the lowest settlement funding assessment (the annual Government grant to pay for services) per person of all unitary authorities in the country

This leaves Council Taxpayers in Wokingham Borough having to fund a higher percentage of its services directly than other councils.

Protecting frontline services

Cllr Imogen Shepherd-DuBey executive member for finance said: “It is only through efficiencies and income generation that we have managed to set a balanced budget once again. Most of our money goes on helping adults and children with social care needs – physical disabilities, learning difficulties, mental health problems and the issues that come with old age. For, I would hope obvious reasons, we prioritise those areas.”

More than 60 per cent of the council’s revenue expenditure goes on adult and children’s services, with the bulk of the rest being used for environmental services, such as road maintenance and waste and recycling collections.

Cllr Shepherd-DuBey added: “The budget also agreed a significant ongoing investment in new facilities and improvements, such as the Gorse Ride redevelopment, care homes, new and expanded schools, the Covid Memorial Wood, solar farms, new roads, sport and leisure provision, affordable housing and improvements at California Country Park. 

“In total, the capital investment commitment over the next three years is £483million, which is funded by contributions from housing developers, grants and prudent borrowing.

“People are sometimes surprised that we can invest in major capital projects while being so short of revenue funding, but that is due to the different way these things are funded – we can only use money from developers or capital grants for specific projects not to pay for ongoing services. It is also true that some of the capital projects are investments that will generate income in the longer term.”

The capital investment over the next three years includes:

Children’s Services and Schools: Total £50.3million, including:

• SEND resource units, hub and post-16 provision
• Expansions and new builds to meet basic demand in secondary schools
• Sixth form expansion
• Care leaver accommodation

Housing, local economy and regeneration: Total £208million, including:

• Continuation of Gorse Ride regeneration
• Purchase of new council houses
• Carnival Hub redevelopment (part of Wokingham Town Centre regeneration)
• Town Centre improvement work

Roads and Transport: Total £100.1million, including:

• Safer routes to schools
• Highways maintenance
• Improving safety/crash barriers
• Improvements to walking and cycling routes
• Major new road schemes

 Adult Social Care: Total £12million, including:

• Investment in provision of day services
• Additional supported living accommodation
• Prevention support to reduce and delay need for long-term care by helping people in the community

 Environment: Total £79.3million, including:

• Investment in renewable solar energy
• Rooks Nest Wood nature park (SANG) extension
• Covid Memorial Wood
• Leisure centre maintenance
• California Country Park lakeside improvements