Public consultation to help Reigate & Banstead Borough Council shape 2024/25 budget gets underway

The Council has invited residents, businesses and partners to give them their views before the consultation ends at 12 noon on January 15, 2024.

The Council has a strong track record of financial management and provides over 50 different services to its 151,400 residents – everything from waste and recycling collections, street cleaning and homelessness services to business support and community safety.

Like all local authorities, Reigate & Banstead Borough Council faces continuing and new financial pressures, due to a combination of factors. These include no direct central government funding since 2017, and the impact of ongoing high levels of cost inflation.

This means that every year Reigate & Banstead Borough Council needs to budget carefully.

At its meeting on November 16, the Council’s Executive approved the public consultation on the Council’s draft budget for 2024/25.

This draft balanced budget is based on a full assessment of current council budgets and future financial opportunities and pressures. It also reflects the Council’s financial sustainability programme, looking at four key areas: income generation, use of assets, prioritisation of resources and achieving value for money.

Leader of the Council, Councillor Richard Biggs, said: “Now we have published our draft proposals for a balanced budget for the coming year, we want to hear your views.

“Your responses will help inform the final Council budget for 2024/25, which will be agreed at a meeting of the Full Council in February 2024.

“Every year, we work hard to deliver services for our communities. The external funding we receive is limited and the Council continues to face pressures from continuing high cost inflation and higher interest rates, so we need to look at where we can make savings without affecting services and how we can generate more income.

“We hope that our proposals strike the right balance, but now is the time to let us know what you think.”

The draft budget includes service budget growth proposals totalling £0.943 million, income and savings of £1.719 million and additional fees and charges of £0.540 million.

With central budgets factored in – including staff pay, price increases and technical changes required to the budget – Reigate & Banstead Borough Council are proposing – overall – unavoidable growth of £3.343 million, offset by additional income and cost savings of £3.304 million.

The budget also recognises that Reigate & Banstead Borough Council also faces continued risks relating to Government funding for housing benefits that may cost up to £0.964 million and would require a call on Reserves to make good the shortfall.

As Reigate & Banstead Borough Council consults on its draft budget, they are also supporting the Local Government Association campaign, Save Local Services, which calls on Government to provide adequate, longer-term funding for local government.

Councils - such as Reigate & Banstead – need greater certainty about our future funding to ensure that we can continue to provide essential services to residents in the future.

How to have your say

The draft budget consultation will run from Monday, November 20 to 12 noon on January 15, 2024.

You can comment by:

– Completing Reigate & Banstead Borough Council’s online survey at www.reigate-banstead.gov.uk/budget-consultation,

– Emailing Reigate & Banstead Borough Council at [email protected]

– Writing to Reigate & Banstead Borough Council at FREEPOST RBBC CONSULTATIONS (no address needed)

You can view the relevant documents and supporting information via the Consultation web page.

Some of Reigate & Banstead Borough Council’s fees and charges require a separate statutory consultation. You can also give Reigate & Banstead Borough Council your views on car park charges and taxi/private hire vehicle and operator licencing fees via these separate consultations which will be available soon via Reigate & Banstead Borough Council’s Consultations web page.