Four-year-old councils facing huge budget pressure

Northamptonshire's two councils are facing a financial challenge for this year and next

Two local councils created just over four years ago said they were facing huge budget pressures.

West and North Northamptonshire councils were formed in 2021 after the government decided to abolish the county council, following its financial collapse, along with the county's district and borough councils.

The restructure of Northamptonshire's local councils is similar to the planned reforms to councils in 21 areas which the government hopes will save money.

Both unitary authorities are now run by Reform UK after the party won control at the local elections in May, having previously being controlled by the Conservatives.

'Lean and efficient'

Councils have said increasing demand for services like adult social care have stretched budgets

West Northamptonshire Council said it was forecasting a £30m gap in its revenue budget, the money it spends on the day-to-day running of services, for the next financial year 2026-27.

It has already identified £20m in savings, but John Slope, cabinet member for finance, said there was a "need to be realistic that this work alone may not be enough to balance the books".

The authority said the gap was due to its level of funding not keeping pace with its growing population and the continued rise in demand for services supporting the most vulnerable residents.

Meanwhile North Northamptonshire council said it was predicting a £15.3m overspend this financial year.

The leader of the council, Martin Griffiths, said: "We recognise that here, like elsewhere, we face significant challenges both with service demand and the economic conditions.

"However, we also need to do what we can to face those challenges head on and be as lean and efficient as possible while delivering quality services to our residents."

'Demand for services is soaring'

Councils are hoping Rachel Reeves delivers a funding boost in her budget later this month

This year 29 councils have been allowed to use Treasury loans or cash from selling assets to cover day-to-day spending, which is normally banned.

Ahead of the Autumn Budget, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that emergency government bailouts were at risk of becoming "normalised" as costs continue to outstrip available resources and push many to the financial brink.

Louise Gittins, LGA chair, said: "Council costs and demand for services are soaring."

She said the system for funding local councils was "fundamentally broken".

Earlier this year the government proposed the biggest reorganisation of councils in England for decades.

Councils involved have been submitting plans to create new local authorities in their areas, including unitary authorities similar to Northamptonshire.

In August, the government insisted this would "improve services and save taxpayers' money", but whether it would deliver savings has been questioned.

'No silver bullets'

Last week parents protested outside West Northamptonshire Council saying more needed to be done to support children in special education needs and disabilities

But opposition parties have been critical of Reform UK.

Dan Lister, leader of the Conservative group on West Northamptonshire Council, said: "Where is the promised Doge [Department of Government Efficiency] and the massive cuts in so‑called waste that were pledged?"

His Conservative colleagues on North Northamptonshire Council said Reform UK were "losing control".

Their leader Helen Harrison said: "It is widely expected that, like other Reform councils, they will be raising council tax."

Sally Keeble, a former Labour MP, and the party's leader on West Northamptonshire Council, said: "Reform will need to explain to people that they have no silver bullets. Tax cuts and Doge aren't going to fix this."

While the Liberal Democrat Jonathan Harris said West Northamptonshire Council "should not just be looking at efficiencies and savings - you can only squeeze the lemon so much - but also looking at progressive opportunities to raise revenue, such as visitor levies".

Emily Fedorowycz, leader of the Greens on North Northamptonshire Council, said Reform UK was "making short-term, costly choices instead of tackling the real structural issues".

She said the council needed "creative local solutions" to costly services, such as home-to-school transport, as well as investing in energy saving measures.

West and North Northamptonshire Councils will be discussing their draft budgets for the next financial year at Cabinet and Executive meetings in December, with a final sign off on the budgets taking place in February.