|
Welcome to a special edition of our Residents’ eNewsletter with information about Our Council Plan and our budget for the coming year.
£2 billion budget agreed for 2024/25
West Sussex County Council will invest £2bn to support residents, communities and businesses over the coming year, including an extra £81.9m of funding for vital day-to-day services.
The council’s budget for 2024/25 was agreed at a meeting of Full Council today, Friday 16 February, where councillors also approved Our Council Plan, which sets out our priorities.
The extra funding includes:
• £31.2m more for vulnerable children and young people,
• £18.3m more for adults’ social care,
• £4m extra to maintain the county’s 4,000km of roads,
• £27.8m to manage increased costs, as inflation levels remain high.
During 2024/25 the council also plans to spend £131.6m of its £695m five-year Capital Programme. The main areas of investment being highways, schools and the environment.
At the meeting, members across all political parties debated measures that were then agreed to balance the budget for the year ahead.
These include efficiency savings of £15.7m, an increase in core council tax of 2.99%, and an additional adult social care precept of 2%.
Amendments to the budget proposals and to the council plan were put forward by opposition parties but these were not approved, following a vote.
 How much will your Council Tax be?
The amount of Council Tax you pay depends on your Council Tax band and more information will be made available over the next month.
The increase in the county council’s share of an average Band D property will be £81.54 per year, which is £1.57 per week.
Council Tax is paid to your district or borough council, who have information about help to pay Council Tax, including discounts and eligibility for exemptions.
If you are struggling, further financial help, advice and practical support is available on our Cost of living pages.
 Our priorities and where we will invest
Here's a breakdown of where we will spend our budget next year in West Sussex:
- Managing schools and education - £961m
- Caring for adults and keeping people healthy - £507m
- Children’s social care and supporting young people - £204m
- Protecting the environment, recycling, and waste disposal - £91m
- Maintaining our roads and providing transport - £83m
- Running our organisation - £77m
- Fire and Rescue Service - £38m
- Supporting local communities - £22m
- Supporting the local economy - £3m.
Following a public consultation where residents were asked which services were most important to them, the council also confirmed its commitment to four key priority areas, underpinned by a cross cutting theme of ‘protecting the environment’.
The priorities are:
- Keeping people safe in vulnerable situations
- A sustainable and prosperous economy
- Helping people and communities fulfil their potential
- Making best use of resources.
 Who does what in West Sussex?
You told us in a recent survey that you wanted to know more about local democracy, how it works, and who does what.
There are three tiers of local government in West Sussex serving more than 880,000 residents.
West Sussex County Council provides around 80% of public services in the county, including roads and travel, education, social care, libraries, waste disposal and recycling and the Fire & Rescue Service.
Our county also has district, borough, town and parish councils, and eight MPs.
Find out more about who does what and how local democracy works on the link below.
Join us to find out how you can become a councillor
Could you play an active part in shaping the services that are provided for residents in your community?
Next year West Sussex County Council will hold a whole-council election so now is a good time to think about about whether you would be interested in becoming a county councillor.
Local councillors come from all walks of life and with varying backgrounds, experiences, and family lives. The most important thing is a desire to make a difference for your community.
We are hosting events across West Sussex until June for anyone wanting to find out more.
 Tell us what you think
There are lots of ways you can let us know your opinions and views on county council plans, initiatives and services.
Join our People's Panel, view and take part in current consultations and surveys, or give comments and suggestions about how we can improve our services.
Did you receive this eNewsletter from a friend? Sign up here.
We have more than 40 eNewsletters on a wide variety of topics including Envrionment & Climate Change, Walking & Cycling, Highways & Transport, Recycling, Weather Alerts and Staying Safe Online. View all topics here.
|
