AGAINST a challenging backdrop of local government budget cuts and increased costs, West Devon Borough Council has managed yet another balanced budget for 2025/26.

On Tuesday, February 18, the Council agreed its 2025/2026 budget for the next financial year.

The Council is forecasting a £1.6m budget gap by 2026/27 primarily due to cuts in the Local Government Finance Settlement published at the end of last year.

As a rural authority, the Council has been hit hard by the Government’s withdrawal of the Rural Services Delivery Grant (RSDG).

The £0.6m funding grant the Council previously received every year had compensated rural Councils for the extra costs to deliver services in rural areas.

This year will also be the last for the New Homes Bonus payments, a vital source of income for councils.

Another unexpected blow to the already stretched finances was the rise in employer’s National Insurance contributions, with only two thirds of the cost being covered by Government funding for West Devon.

The removal of these funding streams has meant a substantial loss of funding both now and in the future, so the Council must tighten its belt and make tough decisions to continue to deliver quality services to around 58,750 West Devon residents.

At the meeting, councillors agreed to increase West Devon Borough Council’s share of the Council Tax bill by £7.82 for the year.

This means a Band D property will pay £269.41 this year to the Borough Council for all its services, less for residents living in bands A, B or C, more for bands E and above.

This increase is 15p per week, an increase of 2.99 per cent.

Cllr Mandy Ewings, Leader of West Devon Borough Council, said: “It’s not an easy time for anyone now and this is the last thing we want to do to raise even a penny in council tax. We must balance the books and meet our own challenges to make sure we have our teams supporting our communities.

“These services aren’t always the ones that immediately spring to mind, like the Waste service.

“For instance, we remain committed to helping those with the current housing crisis. There are many housing schemes currently in development.

“The Council has purchased 11 homes by attracting £1.45m of Government grant funding under the Local Authority Housing Fund for temporary accommodation and resettlement.

“In the spring we will also open the doors to our three new temporary accommodation flats on Plymouth Road in Tavistock.

“We continue to work tirelessly to bring social rented accommodation to those who need it.

“The Council will also ringfence funding for housing initiatives from charging second homes owners a 100% premium. The West Devon share of this funding is £80,400 (11 per cent).”

“We know that climate and biodiversity is high on many residents’ agendas, so we have launched schemes to help preserve the area’s biodiversity, along with other projects, including a thermal imaging camera for local communities to use. The camera will help residents improve their homes’ energy efficiency with help from our partners, Tamar Energy Community.

“On the streets, we’ve been cleaning up chewing gum mess, with an innovative piece of equipment we’ve bought with funding from a grant from the Chewing Gum Task Force, to keep West Devon’s streets clean for our residents and visitors.

“Despite operating within a very tight budget, we ensure that every penny we use is used effectively to benefit our community.

“Please remember when your Council Tax bill lands on your mat, that we only keep a very small portion of it (11 per cent).

“Although we collect the money for other Councils as well as the Fire and the Police, most of the council tax bill is distributed to Devon County Council to pay for their services of adult social care, children’s services and the road network provision.

“The Council Tax also helps to fund the Police and Fire Authorities, along with your local Town Council and Parish Councils, so they can continue to deliver their valuable services.”