The council has continued to invest in services that experience significant and continued demand pressures, with prioritisation being given to the most vulnerable groups. Despite an increase in funding from the finance settlement, the complexity of service provision continues to create budget pressures.
In summary, the general fund budget included:
Growth of £27.880m to meet statutory obligations, demand pressures and key policy priorities aligned to resident demand.
Contract and pay inflation of £9.615m.
Savings and efficiency proposals of £21.596m to balance the budget.
A budgeted contribution to reserves of £3.5m to improve financial resilience over the medium term.
The council's outturn performance was reported to Cabinet in June 2026 - Cabinet Report.
The year 2025/26 remained challenging for local government across the nation, including our council. Inflation remains above the Bank of England's target rate of 2%, and local authorities continued to experience significant cost and volume pressures, especially in the areas of social care and homelessness.
Although the 2025/26 budget prioritised significant growth in these areas, the actual demand and market conditions have surpassed expectations, resulting in overspending in demand-led services such as social care, homelessness, and temporary accommodation. This led to an overspend on services of £13.5m, which was offset by corporate budgets, especially interest on cash balances.
| Revised Budget £m | Outturn £m | Variance £m |
|---|
| Adults and Public Health | 115.163 | 124.190 | 9.027 |
|---|
| Children's and Schools | 96.174 | 103.142 | 6.968 |
|---|
| Economy and Sustainability | 7.993 | 9.858 | 1.865 |
|---|
| Housing and Environment | 31.108 | 29.115 | (1.993) |
|---|
| Resources | 44.150 | 41.140 | (3.010) |
|---|
| Strategy and Change | 10.405 | 11.087 | 0.682 |
|---|
| Net cost of services | 304.994 | 318.532 | 13.538 |
|---|
| Corporate budgets | 18.482 | 4.798 | (13.684) |
|---|
| Subtotal | 323.476 | 323.330 | (0.146) |
|---|
| Funding | (323.476) | (324.110) | (0.634) |
|---|
| TOTAL TO GENERAL FUND BALANCE | 0.000 | (0.780) | (0.780) |
|---|
The £0.780m underspend has been transferred to General Fund balances in light of the continued financial uncertainty.