The City of York Council’s new draft budget proposal, published at 5pm yesterday by Cllrs Katie Lomas and Peter Kilbane, will see the council make a significant £8 million investment in essential public services, made possible by rises in council tax and car parking fees.
That £8 million will be used to meet increased demand for services, support people with complex care needs, and address cost pressures for those who need care, both in care homes and in their own homes.
Cllr Peter Kilbane said, “The big news for me is that there’s no new cuts in this budget. The mood music is very different but we’re still not out of the woods yet. We’re progressing carefully but we’ve got a bit of hope.”
The budget proposal has been brought forward following a consultation process with more than 2,000 residents.
At a press briefing yesterday afternoon Cllr Katie Lomas outlined which areas will receive extra investment over the next year.
In terms of cost of living support, she announced an extra £130,000 to be provided as food and fuel vouchers for those in our community who may be struggling to pay their bills.
This is an increase of over 50% compared to the last budget — raising the total available for the vouchers to £380,000.
They’ve also allocated another £50,000 to York Hungry Minds — a council initiative to provide free school meals in areas around the city that need them most.
An extra £20,000 has been put aside for Dial & Ride — a service that helps isolated residents to get around York.
At this time last year City of York Council were forecast to overspend their budget by £11 million. This time around it is down to just £2.6 million.
This growth has been made possible because of a proposed 4.99% rise in council tax and an increase in the minimum two-hour charge at all council controlled car parks in the city.
The new two-hour minimum — now £4.85 which is also the same price as the cost of a family bus ticket — is expected by the council to bring in an extra £1.2 million over the next 12-months.
To lessen the burden of increased parking charges on residents, the council have tripled the Minster Badge parking discount (from 10% to 30%).
Cllr Kilbane says that the link between bus and car parking prices is deliberate, and is aimed at encouraging more residents and tourists to use buses rather than cars, reducing congestion to help the council move closer to meeting both their environmental and financial sustainability targets.
Cllr Kilbane said, “We fully understand the concerns of local businesses, but a lot of research shows that people who walk, bus or cycle into an area spend more [than those who drive]. When we put the parking prices up last time there was a slight decrease in the number of parking transactions we received, but at the same time there was an increase in footfall in the city centre and an increase in spend. So, we want to keep that going.”
The council’s director of finance Debbie Mitchell added “This budget is a step forward, but we are not out of the woods yet. Our transformation programme will ensure we adapt and innovate to meet future pressures while continuing to deliver for the people of York.”
The budget proposals will be discussed at the Budget Executive meeting on 21 January 2025, followed by a Budget Council meeting on 27 February 2025, where a final decision will be made. Residents are encouraged to attend these meetings or share their views in advance by visiting the council’s website.
For more information about the budget proposals and upcoming meetings, visit here.
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