Report of the Responsible Finance Officer on the budget 2026/27

REPORT OF THE RESPONSIBLE FINANCIAL OFFICER ON THE BUDGET 2026/27

INTRODUCTION

The Finance Committee need to recommend a budget and a precept for 2026/27 to the Town Council.

Members may recall that 12 months ago, the Council approved an increase in the precept from £56.60 to £72.70, this was to facilitate some significant changes to stabilise the Council following the Council's acceptance of additional responsibilities, these have taken place in the current financial year as reported in the minutes of the 10^th November 2025 Finance Committee Meeting.

In this report to this Committee in November 2025, the Treasurer explained that there was likely to be an underspend on salaries of the 2025/2026 budget due to timelines of staff turnover. However, these savings have offset some overspends in other areas which include increased business rates charges, continued Parks vehicle repairs and ongoing paddling pool repair works, but at this point in time, there is a forecast breakeven figure predicted for the 2025/2026 budget.

This confirms that the decision to increase the precept significantly this year was justified, and given this, the Town Council need to be aware that there will be further increased responsibilities going forward in 2026 /2027 in the form of increased business rates, additional staff changes and the possibility of updating the Councils Parks vehicle and a reduction in burial fees income, these will need to be considered in the setting of the 2026/27 precept level.

The appendices attached to this report provide:

Revised estimates for the current year; and
A draft budget for 2026/27.

ACTUAL INCOME AND EXPENDITURE TO 31^st DECEMBER 2025

Accepted good accounting practice requires that budgetary control be carried out during each financial year. This has been happening as usual at officer level but also by the Finance Committee in November 2025, when it considered a report on budgetary control at the halfway stage of the financial year.

These papers do include a column showing 'Actual Apr-Dec' and this is taken into account in the next column i.e. Revised Estimate for 2025/26.

REVISED ESTIMATE 2025/26

Net expenditure per the Revised Estimate for 2025/26 is £504,196 compared with the original budget of £503,955 so a small overspend is now forecast. This compares with a forecast underspend of £10,000 reported to the Finance Committee in November 2025. The variation relates, as referred to in paragraph 1 above, to salaries savings, but increased costs to vehicle repairs and increased business rates charges and decreased burial fees income that have had a knock on effect and thus giving the predicted outturn on budget in 2025/2026.

The two major variations that have occurred were known of in the Autumn and this, it is felt, indicates that effective budgetary control is in place.

DRAFT BUDGET 2026/27

The summary page of the draft budget shows Total Net Expenditure for 2026/27 of £605,692. By far the biggest figure in the budget is salaries and this figure has been calculated on a person-by-person basis and takes account of pay awards (a 4% increase in the pay bill in 2026 has been assumed), increments where relevant and includes provision for National Insurance and employer pension contributions. Prices have increased in the last 12 months or so and allowance is made for this where it appears to be required.

In relation to income, the recommendations of the Parks Committee are:

cemetery fees -an increase from £950 to £975 for full burials but an increase from the £400 to £425 charge for burial of cremated remains; and
allotment rents -an increase from £56 to £62 (large plots) and from £28 to £31 (small plots).

The issues arising in preparing the draft budget for 2026/27 include:

Increase in salary costs for a full time Civic Support Officer and a part time Events Co-Ordinator at 19hrs per week.
A significant reduction in the income projection of the cemetery burial fees as demand for cremations has taken over in recent years.
Paddling pool update - see paragraph 5 below.
'Bids' from Parks Committee- see paragraph 6 below.
Savings - where possible, the Town Council need to find these to keep precept increases as low as they reasonably can be.
Size and use of earmarked funds and reserves -see paragraph 7 below.
Need for working balances (might be called contingency)- see paragraph 8(b) below.
The work of the Stourport Future group has had a budget of £2,825 included for 2026/27
The talked-about abolition of Wyre Forest District Council does not currently have any implications for the Town Council's budget in 2026/27.

RIVERSIDE PADDLING POOL

The Riverside paddling pool repair work has continued through 2025/2026 with the contractors being authorised to conduct a pressure-testing review and following this, work was carried out to improve the resilience of the pool for many years ahead. The planned works for 2026/2027 include a new floor to be laid in March 2026 which will need to be tested and commissioned and an upgrading testing kit. It is suggested that £16,000 be provided for in the budget as a one-off non-recurring item for these works to be carried out and the pool to be opened for the May Spring Bank Holiday.

RECOMMENDATIONS FROM PARKS COMMITTEE

At the Parks Committee meeting on 19th January 2026, Members of the Committee supported the following recommendations for inclusion in the budget:

Additional planting at Villeneuve Gardens - £500
Replacement tree planting in the town due to storm damage and age - £1,000
Possible grants towards trees and plants and provision for match funding in 2026 - £1,000
New Inclusive play equipment - £20,000
Additional Portakabin in cemetery for storage, permission sought from the Diocese of Worcester - £2,000
Replacement / upgrade of bins in parks - £1,000

The Parks Committee felt that, for the time being, the proposals itemised below were put on hold until quotations could be obtained and standards followed as part of the Town Council’s compliance with its Financial Regulations and Standing Orders, and a further Parks Committee meeting would be convened in approximately 4 months’ time for further discussions to take place.

Updating the water supply to the external public toilets.
Stourport Community Centre Roof repairs.
Replacement vehicle for Parks Team.

FUNDS AND RESERVES

Council policy is to maintain a number of funds to avoid 'spikes' in expenditure that distort the pattern of expenditure between financial years. The programme attached shows the 4 funds. The programme for 2025/26 shows, in accordance with paragraph above, (a) the replacement of the ride on mower; (b) some allowance, £250, for new hand tools and (c) provision for additional Portakabin, and confirmation is required from the Finance Committee to action these reserves this year.

The programme attached also shows the new 'localism renewals' fund which will build up funds to, in due course, meet any significant replacement/renewal costs at the paddling pool, the riverside toilets and the Community Centre that could be required in the future.

DETERMINATION OF THE PRECEPT FOR 2026/27

(a) COUNCIL TAX BASE

The Town Council's Council Tax base has been set by the District Council at 7,363 compared with 7,256 in 2025/2,6 this being an addition of 107 properties. This means that:

with no increase in the current charge of £72.70, the precept income to the Town Council would increase from £527,511 to £535,290; and
the reported budget for 2026/27 of £605,692 is suggested giving a £9.56 increase to the Council Tax from the current charge of £72.70 to £82.26, and as an example a £1 increase would give a precept of £542,653

The amount of increase this time in the taxbase is felt to be disappointingly low in light of all the new development in the town but less disappointing than it was last year.

(b) WORKING BALANCE

Town Council policy was for some years to maintain a minimum balance of £50,000 but it was agreed four years ago to increase this to £70,000, the current working balance at the end of 2025/26 is estimated to be £80,604.

The Town Council does also hold a number of earmarked reserves and the balances on these are forecast as follows:

Description	At 31st March 2026	At 31st March 2027
Elections	£8,133	£15,133
Vehicles, mowers, equipment, computing etc.	£3,104	£6,204
Civic Hall maintenance	£21,110	£27,110
Localism renewals	£8,500	£13,000

(c) PRECEPT FOR 2026/27

Members will, as always, have to strike a balance between protecting the Council's services, both now and for the foreseeable future, and minimising the Council Tax charges. It is recognised that different members may strike this balance differently, but the Council has to come to a decision.

The draft budget for 2026/27 attached is based on an increase of £9.56 (from £72.70 to £82.26 an increase of 13.15%. This leaves working balances at £80,604. I am happy to discuss this with Members but achieving a higher level of balances would require an even greater increase in the precept.

Members may be interested to see how the Stourport precept in 2025-26 compared with that of other sizable town and parish councils in Worcestershire.

Local Authority	Parish Name	2024-25 Band D council tax	2025-26 Band D council tax
Wyre Forest	Bewdley	£78.52	£84.30
Wyre Forest	Kidderminster Town Council	£57.75	£68.95
Wyre Forest	Stourport-on-Severn	£56.60	£72.70
Malvern Hills	Malvern	£122.07	£127.61
Wychavon	Droitwich Spa	£51.42	£47.21
Wychavon	Evesham	£90.83	£92.87
Wychavon	Pershore	£90.52	£88.80
Bromsgrove	Alvechurch	£94.13	£102.81
Bromsgrove	Hagley	£75.07	£80.69
Bromsgrove	Wythall	£39.96	£55.90

Members are, of course, very welcome to discuss all these issues and the draft budget figures can be amended as appropriate.

RECOMMENDATIONS

It is RECOMMENDED that the Committee Recommends to Council:

A decision in relation to burial fees and allotment rents;
Approval of the Revised Estimates for 2025/26;
Approval of a draft Budget for 2026/27 and the Funds and Reserves schedule.
An appropriate level of precept after taking into account the draft Budget, any further budget 'bids' and the remainder of this report.

I will be pleased to respond to any questions arising and help the Finance Committee to decide on its recommendations.