Council tax
The Government announced that they would allow districts to increase council tax by up to 3% or £5 a year on a Band D equivalent property, if that is greater than 3%, without triggering a referendum. Their spending power calculation for 2025/26 assumes that districts will increase their council tax by whichever is the highest.
We have decided to follow the government’s lead to maximise our spending power potential whilst keeping costs low for residents and continuing to provide Wyre's vital front-line services. This equates to a rise of £6.77 (2.99%) a year on a Band D property, or just 13p per week, and means that the overall cost for all Wyre's services will be 64p per day.
Where does your council tax go?
Council tax is made up of a number of payments to the authorities that provide services in the area:
- Wyre Council
- Lancashire County Council
- Police and Crime Commissioner
- Combined Fire Authority
- Parish and Town Councils
Wyre Council is the billing authority and collects council tax on behalf of all these agencies however Wyre's portion represents 10% or £233.08 (on a band D property) of the total amount of your bill.
By how much has our government funding been cut?
2013/14 - a reduction of £0.5m or 7%
2014/15 - a reduction of £1m or 14%
2015/16 - a reduction of £1m or 16%
2016/17 - a reduction of £0.9m or 16%
2017/18 – a reduction of £0.7m or 14%
2018/19 – a reduction of £0.4m or 9%
2019/20 – a reduction of £0.4m or 10%
2020/21 – a slight increase of £0.05m or 1.6%
In 2021/22 our baseline funding was frozen at £3.409m. We also received £0.145m in Lower Tier Authority grant.
In 2022/23 our baseline funding was frozen at £3.409m. We continued to receive the Lower Tier Services Grant at £0.156m, Revenue Support Grant of £0.001m and as a one-off we received £0.235m in 2022/23 Services Grant.
In 2023/24 our baseline funding, including Revenue Support Grant, rose with inflation to £3.537m. We also received Services Grant of £0.138m and Funding Guarantee Grant of £0.570m.
In 2024/25 our baseline funding, including Revenue Support Grant, rose with inflation to £3.666m. We also received Services Grant of £0.024m and Funding Guarantee Grant of £1.098m.
In 2025/26 our baseline funding, including Revenue Support Grant, rose with inflation to £3.700m. We also received Recovery Grant of £0.374m.
Over the fifteen years up to and including 2025/26 we have lost £6.7m in funding which is the equivalent of nearly 76% of our grant back in 2010/11 (which was £8.9m).
How have we compensated for the reduction in funding?
We’ve prepared for it over the years by reducing spending, being a member of the Lancashire Business Rates Pool since 2016/17, making sound treasury management decisions including going debt free in 2022/23 and balancing the books through efficiency savings, income generation and prudent financial management including exploring commercial opportunities.
Key decisions on pension prepayments, business rate pooling and debt rescheduling have meant that there has been less pressure on services to make cuts and efficiencies generated through digitalisation and other initiatives have been able to be ploughed back into service delivery.
Business rates pooling has generated additional income for Wyre of £5.1m since its inception in 2016/17 and is forecast to generate a further £1.6m between 2024/25 and 2025/26. Since 2020/21, by prepaying our pension contributions, our deficit repayment is now in surplus saving around £700,000 annually (£4.2m saved between 2020/21 and 2025/26). Finally, by taking the opportunity during the Truss era to repay our debt to the Public Works Loans Board (PWLB) in October 2022, we are saving £1.9m in future interest payments in addition to making a saving on the repayment of the principal.
Other efficiency achievements for the four years ending 31 March 2024 are £1.3m, an average of £320,000 each year. Efficiency savings assist the delivery of the council’s corporate priorities supporting the continued improvement of services for our residents but these are not always readily achievable when dealing with increased demand. However, the Council Plan, includes a strand of ‘Customer Focused and Innovative’ work that aims to provide cashable efficiencies to support bridging the budget gap. A Transformation Strategy has been developed and an action plan is scheduled to be presented to Full Council in April 2025. This will help to shift the focus away from using reserves to balance the budget and move towards a more formal efficiency programme to help reduce the gap.
Wyre has never shied away from challenging how we deliver services or making difficult decisions and will continue to do so. This means continually reviewing how we operate, being innovative and ensuring services meet the needs of our communities.
What does the budget mean for residents?
We've been steadfast in protecting and improving council services so residents consistently receive high standards of delivery.
Our latest Life in Wyre Survey results show that 78% of our residents are satisfied or very satisfied with where they live.
What can we expect in future?
2025/26 is another one-year settlement deal so beyond this our funding position is uncertain. The current government are intending to conduct the delayed Review of Needs and Resources and Business Rates Retention Reform (including a business rates reset) in time for the 2026/27 settlement.