Cabinet to consider draft budget

Published: Tue 6th December, 2022

  • The image shows a calculator and pen with the words 'draft budget for 2023/24'

Charnwood Borough Council has produced a draft budget for 2023/24 which will be considered by Cabinet on December 15.

The Council’s lead member for finance, Cllr Tom Barkley, says the Council continues to deliver excellent value for money and provides services which are used by nearly all residents in the borough.

Cllr Barkley said: “As Charnwood sends out the council tax bills, people often assume we receive the whole amount they pay, but that is far from the truth.

“The Charnwood element makes up about seven per cent of the bill and for that we provide a range of services for the borough – everything from recycling and refuse collections to operating leisure centres and Loughborough Town Hall.

“Yet again, for this budget we are squeezing the value out of every pound. We are having to use reserves to make up the difference between the funding we receive and the cost of running services but thanks to prudent financial management in the past, we can do this.

“This budget does include a proposal to increase the Charnwood element of council tax by £5 across the year, or about 9p a week. We do not want to raise even our small element of council tax, but we feel this is necessary to help protect frontline services and we will continue to look for ways to operate more efficiently

“Historically, Charnwood also has one of the lowest rates of council tax in the country.”

The Council’s draft budget for 2023/24 looks to spend around £20 million on services for the borough.

The Council is responsible for a wide range of services including; collecting recycling and refuse from more than 70,000 homes in the borough; supporting homeless people; managing open spaces including the Outwoods; emptying dog bins, litter bins, street cleaning; food safety inspections; licensing of pubs and clubs and taxis; operating Loughborough Markets, town centre events and the annual four-day Loughborough Fair; running Loughborough Town Hall; operating three leisure centres; running Charnwood Museum with the county council; handling planning applications and strategic planning; and operating a 24/7 CCTV system.

For more information about the budget, please read the report to Cabinet. There is also information available on this webpage - www.charnwood.gov.uk/budgetsummary 

The Council is also consulting on the draft budget and people can have a say via the web page. Comments must be received by midnight on Sunday, December 18.