Nottingham City Council continues to demonstrate financial stability, with the authority’s latest budget forecasts projecting a £14.6m underspend for the current financial year.
A report to the Council’s Executive Board on 18 November outlines the latest budget position based on the first half of 2025/26.
While the Council is proposing a balanced budget for 2026/2027 that doesn’t use a penny of Exceptional Financial Support (EFS), latest figures for 2025/2026 include a significantly reduced need for EFS than first expected. The budget set at the start of the year assumed £20.8m of EFS would be needed to balance the budget, but this has now reduced to £6.2m with potential to be completely eliminated by the end of this financial year.
The 2025/26 budget includes savings of £39.1m of which £26.7m (68%) have been delivered or are on track, with £12.4m of savings not expected to be made in-year or at all requiring mitigations, including over £10m of staffing vacancies.
A revised Capital Programme of investment in housing, buildings, roads and other infrastructure has been increased by £29.9m to £297.7m due to new schemes identified.
The report says that there is scope for core budget assumptions to change, and although the potential for this should significantly decrease as the financial year progresses, it highlights the importance of tight financial management and continued focus on delivery of savings.
It notes a £9.3m risk from Integrated Care Board income reductions within the Adults & Public Health not included in the forecast. The Housing Revenue Account (HRA), which covers spending on council housing, shows an overspend of £3m primarily due to increased expenditure on repairs and maintenance, which will increase the contribution needed from HRA reserves to £6.4m in year.
City Council Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Finance and Resources, Councillor Ethan Radford, said: “It’s clear to anyone looking that the work we have been doing to get our house in order is paying off, thanks to a much tighter grip on our finances. We’re expecting to use a around quarter of the predicted amount of Exceptional Financial Support for 25/26, and our proposed budget for next year would see us balancing without needing to use any additional support at all.
“As for any council, there are still some major challenges we face in order to keep our budget on track. Care for adults and children, where demand for vital services continues to increase, remains our biggest areas of risk in terms of pressure on budgets.
“We’ve launched a Future Council Conversation to get people’s views on our budget proposals for 2026/27 which include an extra £4.5 million next year as part of a proposed £15m investment package in front line services such as additional Neighbourhood Safety Officers, tackling fly tipping and litter; road repairs and improving our parks as well as £11.5 million of efficiency savings.
“Ahead of any final decisions being made, I hope as many people as possible take the time to have their say via the online survey or at one of the public meetings taking place.”