West Sussex council faces £30m budget gap

West Sussex County Council's leader said it would need to raise council tax "just to stand still"

West Sussex County Council faces a budget gap of £30m in the next financial year, even if it increases council tax by the maximum amount allowed.

Councillor Deborah Urquhart, deputy leader of the council, said there was "great uncertainty and risks" around the authority's costs during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

She added that council tax would need to be increased by 10% "just to stand still" amid pressures in adult and children's services, a need to improve the condition of highways and an increase in the cost of borrowing.

Currently, councils with social care duties - such as West Sussex - can only impose a maximum 4.99% increase.

“If government doesn’t fund local government adequately, we will be unable to deliver the services our residents expect and deserve," Ms Urquhart told the meeting.

Without including council tax, the budget tax for 2025-26 would be £60m, with a cumulative deficit of £232m by 2029-30, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The council's cabinet member for finance, Jeremy Hunt, said: "It is essential that the government either fundamentally changes how many of these services are provided or ensure that we are properly funded in order to continue to provide them for our residents".