Council outlines spending commitments for year ahead

West Berkshire Council has outlined spending plans for the 2026/27 financial year ahead which focuses on delivering services residents continue to be proud of.

From April the Council will be spending £210.9m delivering the services that residents rely on every day. In addition to this, another £46 million will be spent on infrastructure, such as buildings and roads, and major equipment - areas that will provide benefits to the community for many years.

Among the key areas of spend next year are:

• £84m on adult social care and £50m on children's services - protecting vulnerable adults and children and boosting service already recognised as Good by the Care Quality Commission and OFSTED respectively
• £13m to be spend on our roads- an area important to residents and further strengthening an area in which West Berkshire is one of only four councils in the south-east to be assessed as 'green' by the Government for its road maintenance. This includes a £1.6m investment by the Council on top of the national funding provided for road maintenance
• £20m on bin collections, recycling and waste management- building on a strong track record with residents' recycling habits putting the Council in the top 25% nationally
• Deliveringa £9m school improvement programme to build on already strong performance with 95% schools rated 'Good' or 'Outstanding'.

Specific projects set to be delivered next year include:

• A brand new play park at Shaw House for families to enjoy, and newly dressed rooms that show how the House was lived in during bygone eras.
• The creation of more emergency accommodation by repurposing a former care home in Hungerford
• Introducing more EV charging points across the district
• A new 3G pitch for the Faraday Road ground in Newbury
• Introducing three new pop-up libraries - bringing the total to six across the district
• Improvements to our schools with projects at Falkland Primary School, Theale Primary School and Brookfields Schools.

At the same time the Council will continue to look for ways to support those who need it most. Recent initiatives include an exception to paying Council Tax to give young people leaving care the best start as begin their adult lives and the Low Income Family Tracker scheme identifying residents who may be eligible for unclaimed benefits - putting money back in those residents' pockets. Council Tax, although it will increase, won't go beyond the level the Government has assumed when calculating each council's share of funding.

The Council has asked the Government for Exceptional Financial Support borrowing facility of up to £30 million for the 2026/27 financial year ahead to support the quality of our services for our residents. This borrowing request is supported by additional focus on the Council's in year financial position, and the Council will seek to reduce this ask wherever possible. In addition, the Council actively applies for central Government funding to deliver projects wherever it can at little or no cost to local residents.

Speaking about the budget Councillor Iain Cottingham, Executive Member for Finance, said:

"This is a budget which will deliver for local residents while navigating, as best as we can, the constant reductions in central Government funding. We have a strong track record of delivery and we will continue to spend your money on the services which are most important to us all.

"Nationally our strong ratings in terms of highways, social care and recycling put us among the top performing councils in the country - we will continue to provide hundreds of services that residents rely on and will protect them as far as possible.

"The challenges we face around funding are well understood. We are continually working hard to manage our budgets, to borrow responsibly and to deliver efficient services whilst protecting and improving them as far as possible."

The proposed budget for 2026/27 is now available to read in full as part of the meeting pack for the next Executive committee. The budget is set to be formally agreed at a meeting of full Council on Thursday 26 February.

You listen to the Leader of West Berkshire Council, Councillor Jeff Brooks, introduce his budget and explain how it will deliver for residents here: