All of us need to plan our spending and match it against our income and Waverley Borough Council is no different.
Each February, we set our budget for the following financial year. The budget is constructed over a period of a few months and takes into account many factors including service demands, political objectives, cost pressures, income opportunities and funding constraints.
What is the Budget Book?
We are responsible for lots of vital services. These services are grouped and presented as a formal budget collected together in our Budget Book. The Budget Book shows where Waverley plans to spend its money and collect its income.
The council agrees its aims, objectives and priorities for the year and these help shape the budget considerations.
Budget Book 2022/23
Draft 2023/24 Budget
Waverley Borough Council’s proposed budget has been published. It sets out how we will continue to deliver quality and vital services over the next three financial years through this unpredictable time amid a cost-of-living crisis, while also delivering on our corporate priorities.
The proposals also include a significant increase in spending to ensure the Borough remains a place that people want to live in, work and visit.
Following the extraordinary national inflation rate, which currently sits at 10.5%, the growing cost-of-living crisis driven by high energy costs, and the continued impact of the pandemic, this remains a very challenging time for virtually all local authorities up and down the country.
Despite the unprecedented inflationary pressures we have proposed a balanced budget for 2023/24 which includes some additional savings and income resulting from some underway programmes. There remains an unresolved funding gap of £5.1m over the next four years.
We are legally obliged to set a balanced budget and the budget includes proposed measures intended to ensure there is a strong financial foundation in place over the coming years during such an unpredictable time, minimising the use of reserves to address short term inflation and protect services.
Council tax proposal
The Government has allowed councils greater flexibility in how they set their council tax. As a result, in 2023/24 we are proposing a 2.99% general increase for the council’s element of council tax. This will mean an increase of £0.11 per week for those in a Band D property.
Find out more
No final decisions on the proposals have been made, and prior to being discussed and debated at Full Council on 21 February, they will be scrutinised by various groups.
More information about the budget proposals, including a link to all the associated papers, can be found the Overview and Scrutiny Committee reports pack.