Earlier start to council budget consultation

On Thursday (November 25) the cabinet of the Royal Borough will be considering a draft of the third budget of this current electoral cycle.

However, unlike in previous years this isn’t a budget designed to stabilise the council’s financial position.

The hard work in relation to that has been done in 2020 and 2021 with the council now firmly back on the right financial track.

Instead, this third budget seeks to build upon that work and secure the council’s financial position, as well as continue to

address the issues required for longer-term financial sustainability, supported by in-year robust financial management against those budgets.

This year we are proposing an investment budget designed to align council spending with the priorities in our emerging Corporate Plan.

In essence, a strategic approach to budget setting over the medium term from both a financial and policy perspective, balancing our income and expenditure to deliver on those new plan objectives.

A clear sign of that investment is the additional £5.3m that will be spent on our key priorities next year, including an increase in spending in adults and children’s services to meet the expected increase in demand, tackling climate change, plus increasing housing and employment oppor tunity.

There will also be additional resources to help with supporting our vulnerable residents when dealing with housing and homelessness, a strong commitment to sustainable transport, and continuing our zero tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour such as fly-tipping and littering.

This investment will also be matched by further efficiency savings, more effective working, and continuing to explore all options for future revenue growth and greater commercial opportunities, as well as reducing growth costs where we can.

However, this does mean that we are also having to propose a below inflation increase

in council tax of 2 per cent, plus a 1 per cent increase for adult social care.

We fully appreciate that it is never easy to ask hardworking taxpayers for more and we have only done so after fully considering all other options.

However, even despite this rise we will still have the lowest council tax in the county, by hundreds of pounds, and one of the lowest levels in England, yet still being one of the most efficient councils.

On the capital investment side our programme for next financial year is over £56million which includes ongoing projects and £14million for new schemes.

This also includes the use of S106 and

CIL funding and will go towards affordable housing provision, new car parking in Maidenhead, and working to reduce the risk and impact of flooding from the River Thames.

Crucially, unlike last year, we are proposing our draft budget a month earlier to allow the maximum amount of time for residents, businesses, and interested parties to make representations as part of the consultation period, as well as to give as much certainly as we can to valued par tners.

The consultation will run from December until the end of January, with consideration given to all feedback, and viable alternatives, to ensure that we deliver a legally compliant balanced budget next year.

Cllr ANDREW JOHNSON Leader of the Royal Borough