Precept increase proposed for Whitby residents in draft budget
Whitby’s mayor has said a town council should look for new sources of funding as the authority considers raising its precepts.
A draft budget for Whitby Town Council proposes a precept increase of between 3.2 per cent and 5 per cent, with councillors set to debate the options a meeting on Tuesday, January 20.
Last year, a 4.87% precept increase was approved after councillors rejected plans for a higher increase to tackle finance challenges.
Cllr Sandra Turner, the Mayor of Whitby, has said the council should also “look at other avenues” for funding, adding that “we don’t have a lot of additional areas where we can increase our budget income”.
She recently told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I personally would like to look and see what funding streams there are that the council can apply to, and predominantly to do projects that the residents of Whitby would like to see.”
An inflation-matched precept increase of 3.2% would raise £588,300, a 3.9% increase would raise £590,800, and a 5% increase would raise £595,300, according to the draft budget.
Overall ‘revised’ income for the town council for 2026/27 is set to be around £621,000, while the projected ‘revised’ expenditure of the authority would be around £569,000.
Cllr Turner said: “We all know Whitby is always in the top five for the most visited tourist destinations, and that brings with it a lot of problems as well as positives.
“There are problems, with the infrastructure, parking, and other things.
"So we’ve got to look at issues surrounding that, and work very closely with North Yorkshire Council to ensure that the impact isn’t too detrimental on residents.
"Because it does have an effect.
“I’m certainly not saying we’re against tourism by any means, but for me, the residents need to have their concerns addressed as well, so they’re always at the top of my list.”
Whitby Town Council has been previously told by auditors that it had insufficient cash reserves, and last year’s budget said “it would be sensible to add £170,000 to reserves in the next three years to bring reserves to £200,000 or approximately 40 per cent of turnover”.