Residents, businesses and community groups are being encouraged to share their views on Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council's plans to continue its significant investment in front line services over the next year.

Last night (5 November), the council’s decision-making Cabinet agreed to go out to public consultation on budget proposals that set out how the council plans to fund its services for the next year from April 2025.

Proposals for the budget include continuing the significant extra funding for front line services introduced last year following feedback from residents. This included an additional £750,000 to keep the borough’s streets and open spaces clean and well-maintained and an extra £180,000 to improve play areas.

New things to be funded next year proposed in the draft budget include introducing an extreme sports event next summer to boost activities on offer for young people in the borough and re-opening the public toilets for people visiting War Memorial Park. As part of the council’s work to improve the Top of the Town and boost the night time economy, proposals include introducing free overnight parking between 7pm and 8am in council-owned short stay car parks in the area.

To support the council’s work to tackle the borough’s climate and ecological emergencies, investment plans include the roll-out of food waste collections, continuing the work of the council’s Green Team, which supports residents to become more sustainable, and providing more electric vehicle chargers.

Leading by example, plans also include exploring energy efficiency improvements for council-owned buildings and to boost the borough’s biodiversity, additional funding is also proposed to help maintain the borough’s trees.

To help improve the lives of residents living in Basingstoke and Deane, funding is proposed to continue the council’s work to provide housing advice for residents looking for a home. Additional money is also being set aside to provide more one-to-one support for residents struggling with their finances by helping them to address issues such as debt. Working with partners, this will form part of a wider action plan which is being developed to tackle poverty in the borough.

To help fund the council’s services, an average 10p per week council tax increase is proposed, bringing the borough’s part of the council tax to £146.42 a year for the average household. This is still likely to make Basingstoke and Deane one of the lowest districts in Hampshire, and most of the country, for council tax.

Alongside this, the council has carried out a detailed review of the charges for additional services it provides to bring them into line with the fees charged by other local councils and providers. As part of the budget proposals, these charges would increase by an average of three per cent, with some charges increasing by more than this to bring fees in line with the cost to deliver these services.

Co-Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Property Cllr Gavin James said: “We are extremely fortunate to be in a position that few other councils are in. We continue to deliver our key front line services and are going a step further by investing a significant amount of money each year to improve these services for our residents. This is because we have managed our finances well, despite an unprecedented rise in costs, and we must not take this for granted.

“We are now seeing the difference that the investment in our services has made in our communities and that is why our proposals for next year’s budget include funding to allow us to continue this important work. Building on this, our draft budget also includes extra money to help improve the lives of our residents with plans for a new event for young people, the re-opening of toilets in one of our flagship parks and help for everyone to have a greener future.

“To help pay for these high-quality services, we are proposing a small rise in council tax and some increases in charges for additional services we provide so we can cover the costs of delivering these services. Our aim has been to make this as fair as possible to minimise the burden on tax payers who do not use these additional services.

“Everyone in the borough has a role in shaping our budget for the next year to make sure it is a budget that delivers on what matters most to them. We want them, as well as businesses and community and voluntary groups, to share their views with us to make sure we are getting it right.”

More information on the proposals, and the opportunity to give views in the consultation that runs until Friday 3 January 2025, is available on the website at www.basingstoke.gov.uk/budget2025