We provide services that support all aspects of life in our communities.
If we spend money on one thing, we have less or nothing to spend on another. Setting the council’s budget is as simple and as complex as that.
Budget forecasts show that the Council is facing a budget gap of £14.8 million next year, 2025/26k, rising to £52 million by 2029-30.
Read more in our news release - Fair funding for councils is critical
The Scottish Government (SG) announced an extra £1 billion for local government in its budget. We will provide updates on what this means for ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute.
Here are some key facts and figures about ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute’s budget challenge, before the SG announcement.
Financial Challenge
What makes our budget?
- 20% Council Tax and other
- 80% from the Scottish Government
Savings made
- We've saved £50 million in the past 10 years
- We need to save another £14.8 million next year
Savings this year
- Our total budget is £302 million - made up of £222 million non-controllable budget, and £80 million controllable budget
- Non-controllable budget covers, for example, inflation, utility costs and budget ring-fenced for specific purposes by the Scottish Government
- £14.8 million needs to be reduced this year from our £80 million controllable budget
Service challenge
The council delivers more services than we have a duty to deliver. And ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute needs its council to provide some services that other councils do not provide, primarily air and ferry services.
Schools, roads, tourism, toilets, economic growth, social care, leisure, customer service, environmental health, planning, local employment, refuse collection, transport…just some of the services the council budget funds.
We will continue delivering more than we have a duty to do. But less budget means fewer extras.
80% of the council’s funding comes from the Scottish Government. We expect to know towards the end of this year what ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ and Bute’s settlement will be.
How does the council deliver more than we have a duty to?
The council’s budget funds services that are a mix of:
- services we must deliver (statutory duties)
- services that we have an option to deliver (statutory powers) and;
- other additional functions (non statutory) primarily to support or enable these duty/power services.
Here are some of the services the budget currently funds that are partly or completely additional to the council’s duties:
Business support services eg Business Gateway; Catering and cleaning; Community learning; Customer communication and support services; Development management; Early years; Economic growth and regeneration; Environmental health; Health and safety; HR&OD (Human Resources and organisational development); ICT (Information technology); Legal services; Parking; Private sector housing support; Property management eg building standards, council estate development; Public toilets; Roads management; School crossing patrollers; Trading standards; Transport eg airports, ferries, buses, strategic transportation; Waste collection
What is statutory? What does the council have a duty to deliver?
As well as some elements of some of the services above, we have a duty to deliver education, finance and audit services, social work (*), housing strategy and homelessness services, Gaelic education, registrar services, civil contingencies.
(*) The council funds the HSCP (health and social care partnership) to deliver social work services.