Contents

  1. Issues of the medium term financial strategy
  2. Medium term financial strategy
  3. Change in financial planning assumptions
  4. Budget pressures, growth, inflation, council tax and business rates
  5. Collection fund
  6. Fees and charges
  7. Risk Strategy
  8. Reserve and contingency strategy
  9. Transformation
  10. Capital programme
  11. Treasury
  12. Strategy milestones
  13. Risk and mitigation measures
  14. Comments of the director of finance and corporate services
  15. Comments of the monitoring officer
  16. Summary of legal implications

3. Change in financial planning assumptions

Since reporting to Public Cabinet in February 2025, the Medium Term Financial Strategy has moved on for a further financial year. 

The budget for 2029/30 reflects the continuation of the assumptions used for 2026/27, which are as follows:

  • an increase in Business Rates income by 2.00%
  • an increase in the Revenue Support Grant of 2.00%
  • council tax increase of 1.99% and 2.00% for Adult Social Care Precept. No change has been assumed in the council tax base reported to Public Cabinet in February 2025
  • increase in Pay award 2.00%
  • increase in levies by 2.00%
  • increase in fees and charges by 2.00%
  • service budget pressures

The 2026/27 budget will continue to carry financial risk linked with the increased levels of demand and economic factors, specifically inflation which will impact third party expenditure. The budget gap is now £32.658m and saving, efficiency and transformational opportunities will need to be identified to close this gap.