Scarborough Town Council passes annual budget with precept changes
Scarborough Town Council’s annual budget has been passed despite disputes about financial commitments.
Reform-led Scarborough Town Council’s budget for 2026/27 was approved at a meeting on Wednesday January 21 at the authority’s first full meeting of the year.
A one per cent reduction in the precept was welcomed by Reform councillors, while opposition members said the plan lacked ambition.
The town council’s precept is set to raise £380,000 compared to £384,000 last year, with an estimated pre-VAT expenditure of £379,088 this year, while last year’s predicted equivalent expenditure was £377,179.
The authority has allocated £70,000 for Christmas lights, £70,000 for “service responsibilities” such as grit bins and roadside verges, and £122,995 for staffing, while mayoral expenses will be reduced to £1,000 from £3,500 last year.
Opposition councillors criticised a reduction of the community grants budget from £50,000 to £19,000, and questioned what the allocation for “projects”, which has been increased ten fold to £10,000, would be spent on.
The Scarborough 400 celebration projects were also allocated £5,000.
Cllr William Stuart said: “This budget cuts the precepts, strengthens our finances, makes provision for services including Christmas lights, and continues to deliver one of the strongest community programmes in North Yorkshire.
“The precept for the coming year in this budget is set at £380,000, which represents a cash reduction of £4,000 or just over one per cent.
“This budget makes a clear statement that this council understands the pressures faced by residents and is cutting its costs accordingly while still delivering for the people of Scarborough.
“We are acutely aware that every pound this council receives represents a hard-earned income of our residents, and we treat it accordingly.”
However, Cllr Rich Maw, an Independent, described the budget as “shockingly unambitious”.
Speaking at the meeting, he said: “Community grants have been slashed from £50,000 to £19,000, cutting support for exactly the organisations that make a tangible difference to people’s lives, meanwhile, reserves are swelling to almost £192,000.”
He added: “Scarborough needs ambition. We need investment in services in local projects, in our community.”
Cllr Stuart said that the £19,000 represented “a substantial commitment”, adding that “across the life of this council, we have invested £69,000 in community grants”.
Cllr Janet Jefferson, an Independent, abstained from the vote on the budget after raising concerns about a lack of consultation on the proposals.
“My concern about the budget is that it would be nice if we had a consultation as a town council, not just a Reform council,” she said, adding: “I’m disappointed that we couldn’t come together and discuss things.
“I would hope in the future that we can work together and not just stipulate that this is a Reform budget.”
Labour’s Cllr Chris Clark also criticised the budget, stating that it was not fully transparent.
He added: “Should this motion not be deferred until a consultation is completed?”
The budget was passed with 10 votes in favour, two votes against, and one abstention.