Budget Consultation 2021-2023 - Consultations

We are seeking your views on the financial challenge Bolton Council faces during the coming years.

The council is facing a serious reduction in its budget as a result of reduced funding from central government and the COVID-19 pandemic. The vast majority of the council’s funding comes from council tax and business rates, however COVID-19 has meant that less businesses are able to pay business rates and more people are claiming a council tax discount because their income has fallen, leaving us with a gap. We are also seeing an increase in demand for services and greater costs, particularly across children’s and adults’ social care and homelessness; the pandemic has also led to a reduction in the income that we are able to bring in from a range of sources, which help to balance the budget.

The level of cuts we need to make as a proportion of the whole budget is significant and follows ten years of austerity measures, which have already had wide-ranging impacts. The cost of providing adults’ and children’s services, including those for our most vulnerable residents, makes up 63% of our budget. In providing all our services, staff costs form 37%, meaning that choices about where we make the cuts are very difficult.

The total budget requirement (excluding schools and levies) is £206 million, as a result the report put forward to Cabinet recommends that the council will have to find savings of £39.5 million.

Given the financial challenge facing the council it is important that residents and stakeholders express their views to help guide and shape decisions. The consultation period will run for six weeks from the 1st December 2020.

To read the full proposals before completing this questionnaire please click here. 

Report findings