Have your say on the Council’s budget for 2027

For the next six weeks, Cheshire West and Chester Council is asking the public for their views on local spending priorities.

The budget consultation - Let’s Talk Budget - will be open until Wednesday, 2 December 2026. It will help to inform decisions that Councillors will make in February 2027 on the overall Council budget.

The Council spends around £1bn each year on services for local people. This is public money which pays for services that matter to residents and communities across the borough. It includes services which everyone benefits from every day, like emptying bins, improving parks and green spaces, and regenerating local areas. However, the majority of the budget funds vital services which provide help for peoples who need additional, individual support, such as those relating to social care, mental health, domestic abuse, and homelessness.

Like many local authorities across the country, Cheshire West and Chester Council continues to face significant financial pressures. The demands on services and the costs of providing them are continuing to increase. We need to prioritise what matters most - make the best use of our resources and reshape our services to achieve the best possible outcomes and value for money.

Leader of the Council, Cllr Louise Gittins said:

“Budgets are always about choices. This means making decisions about how the budget is spent, the services we run, and how the communities you live and work in are supported.

We have made significant and ongoing investments in our borough for some time - including making sure vulnerable adults and children continue to receive the help they need, and regenerating our local areas.

However, we continue to face huge funding challenges. This is the case nationally, and Cheshire West and Chester is no different. Difficult decisions still need to be made. More and more people are looking to us for support, and the costs of providing it are increasing, putting considerable pressure on our finances.

We currently face a funding gap of around £40m over the next four years. Unlike most other organisations, we also have a legal obligation to set a balanced budget. This means we cannot spend more than we receive through national funding and local income.

We will continue to focus our efforts on providing the best services and support for people that we possibly can within the resources we have available. We want to continue to protect services for the most vulnerable people in our borough, and continue to invest in the borough’s future as we have done - but the views of our communities have never been more important.

I urge everyone to take part in our consultation. Let’s Talk Budget is about the future of our communities as much as the financial sustainability of the Council. We are a public sector organisation which exists to serve our local population. Please have your say and play your part in helping to shape our priorities for the coming months and years.”

Cabinet Member for Legal and Finance, Cllr Carol Gahan said:

“Cheshire West and Chester Council has long been recognised for strong financial management, with a reputation for engaging effectively with our communities.

Even so, the budget challenge facing local authorities - including ourselves - is significant.  A number of other councils have reported huge concerns about their ability to maintain levels of service delivery; and several are already receiving additional financial support from central Government.  We are not currently in that position, but we must do everything we can to make sure we continue to live within our means.

The opinions, ideas and priorities of our local communities will be absolutely vital to helping us develop a budget that protects key services as far as possible; prevents needs from escalating; and ensuring that every pound we spend has a positive impact.

This year, people can share their views in a range of ways.  This includes by phone, email, in writing, by completing our budget survey, or by using our budget simulator which helps people consider how they would spend the Council’s budget if it were up to them. I strongly encourage everyone to take part.”

Here’s how you can have your say:

For more information, to complete our survey and to take part in our budget simulator challenge:

cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/letstalkbudget

Write to:

Let’s Talk Budget, Communication and Engagement, Cheshire West and Chester, The Portal, Wellington Road, Ellesmere Port, CH65 0BA.

email:

councilbudget@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk

Phone:

0300 123 8123

...to speak to the Council’s Contact Centre, quoting ‘Let’s Talk Budget’

Complete a paper copy of the consultation, which are available in our libraries. 

Alternative formats are also available on request.