Council sets a balanced budget for the year ahead

The meeting also confirmed an increase in Council Tax by an average of £7.69 per year (2.99%) for Band D households.  

The provision of the Local Council Tax support scheme for residents facing financial hardship will also continue at the same levels as last year, this is administered through the Council’s Council Tax reduction scheme process.

Responsible budgeting for 2025/26

Leader of Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, Cllr Richard Biggs, said:

“Reigate & Banstead has a strong track record of financial management, and we’re once again able to deliver a balanced budget for 2025/26 without needing to use any of our reserves, helping us to provide over 50 different services to our 156,000 residents.

“As in recent years, our budget is set against the backdrop of financial pressures – including the continued reduction in central government funding and challenges within the wider economy.

“With our residents’ support, we’ve worked incredibly hard in recent years to ensure Reigate & Banstead Borough Council has no external debt. We provide many services over and above statutory requirements, such as working with the NHS on preventative services, provision of community centres and building our own social housing.

“In light of the Government’s English Devolution White Paper published in December 2024, as we move towards local government reorganisation in Surrey, our view is that any restructuring of local government boundaries should not be based on ‘redistributing’ the debt of other authorities. 

“In Reigate & Banstead we’re clear on our current budgetary position and we have paved the way for a secure financial year ahead. It is testament to the hard work of officers and councillors that the Council has been able to balance its budget for 2025/26 without the use of General Fund Reserves.”

At last night’s meeting, the Council set a revenue budget requirement of £22.354 million for 2025/26, which include service budget savings of £0.869 million and additional fees and charges income of £0.182 million. These will help to offset increased costs and budget growth.

The 2025/26 budget requirement does not take into account of up to £10 million that the Executive has committed to The Harlequin Theatre. It has been agreed that a detailed cost proposal for the allocation of these specific funds will be submitted and reviewed by the Executive in June.

Before finalising the budget, an eight week public consultation on the draft budget proposals took place. The comments received were considered in preparing the final budget.

Council Tax

Whilst the Council collects all Council Tax across the borough, for every pound received only 11p goes to Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, 75p goes to Surrey County Council (including Surrey Fire and Rescue) and 14p to Surrey Police. In 2025/26, this means that a typical band D household will pay £264.87 a year for the 50 different services that the Borough Council provides – just over £5.00 a week. Residents who live in Horley or Salfords and Sidlow, will pay a little extra for their services.

The Council continues to make support available for residents facing financial hardship. For details about the help and support available for anyone finding it difficult to pay their Council Tax, visit the Cost of living pages on our website.

We’d encourage residents to sign up to our Council Tax e-billing scheme to help save money in printing and postage, and help reduce the Council’s carbon footprint. The savings will be reinvested into services and residents will benefit by being able to manage their account online.