Council approves a 2% council tax rise for a Band D house increase of £6.76 yearly and 2.5% councillor allowance rise.
Band A homes will pay £229.72. Band B homes will pay £268.01. These rates are for 2025/2026. Councillors voted on councillor allowances too. Basic allowances rise 2.5% this year. Special Responsibility and all allowances freeze after. This applies to budget year 2025/26.
An extra £85,000 goes to bulky waste collection. The goal is cutting down wait times. A Conservative plan to freeze council tax failed. It would have used £162,000 in unspent funds. The council got this money during the COVID pandemic. This fund helped with the cost of living.
Cllr. Lishman discussed the budget’s challenges. She mentioned ongoing austerity measures currently matter. The government gave Burnley budget details in December. Core spending rises 1.8%, less than last year. The government expects a three percent tax increase. Burnley chose a lower two percent increase instead. This keeps services running. It also eases the burden on locals.
Burnley gets just 14% of your council tax payment. The rest goes to other services and authorities. A Ward Opportunities Fund pilot will give £5,000 per ward. The council will pilot a borough-wide clean-up. Fly-tipping requests have risen since 2022. A spare truck will do community clean-ups. Each ward will have two Saturday events.
Three new gardener positions will get created. The council will study options for a new leisure center. This would be built in Padiham soon. They added funds for a 3G pitch. Funds would go to Padiham and Hapton areas. Plus, the council will give money to “Beat the Streets”.
Cllr. McGowan wanted more grass cutting and tidier streets. He mentioned the 3G football pitches. He opposed increasing council tax bills. He noted unspent government money existed. Cllr. Townsend said any low tax increase helps. He noted a small saving for most households. The council tax decision reduces service funds. This savings equals £405,000 over five years.