The council tax for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is to go up by 4.99 per cent from April.
It means the annual bill for a Band D property will increase to £1,767.22.
BCP Council says its four-year balanced budget – now approved by the full council – gives financial certainty over the medium-term and avoids central government intervention.
The authority claims the new budget supports the most vulnerable, keeps communities clean and safe, protects infrastructure and provides a sustainable financial future.
Council tax bills will begin arriving through residents’ letterboxes in the coming weeks and will include a breakdown of how council tax is spent.
BCP Council says key achievements of its 2024/25 budget include:
- Delivering a four-year balanced budget that provides financial certainty over the medium-term and avoids central government intervention
- Closing a £44 million funding gap, which included a £30m structural gap resulting from the £30m one-off use of reserves in balancing the 2023/24 budget
- Protecting core services, which are delivered to more than 400,000 residents across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
- Placing funds back into the community with a £320,000 ward improvement fund, providing funds to help every BCP councillor make a positive contribution to their area, in consultation with the people that live there
- Reflecting feedback from residents and businesses gathered through the council’s budget consultation, where residents were asked which services they feel are most important; including protecting library services, safeguarding more day centres, reinstating grounds maintenance funds, protecting CCTV and confirmation of £360k in funding to revitalise all three of our town centres
The 4.99 per cent rise is made up of 2.9 per cent for the basic council tax and two per cent for the social care precept.
The social care precept is a separate charge on council tax bills.
The income generated from this charge can only be used to fund adult social care services.
Council leader Vikki Slade said: “During this financial crisis, the council has put the most vulnerable in our society first and protected the core services that they rely on.
“This budget will keep our communities clean and safe and maintain core infrastructure. It will add millions to our reserves, rather than raiding them, so that we can be protected from future financial shocks.
“Like all councils, we have faced some difficult choices and had some tough decisions to make. We’ve not shirked from that and we know this budget includes decisions that are hard for our residents to hear.
“But this budget means that BCP Council’s financial position is turning a corner and can focus on the priorities our residents have told us about.
“Residents’ feedback on the council’s budget consultation late last year has been really useful in helping us to identify the priorities for our communities, and we have acted on the views of our residents to make changes around our spending on public protection, town centre investment, day services and more.
“Since this consultation, an incredible amount of work has been done by officers and councillors to get us to an approved, balanced budget that is financially sustainable, while reflecting residents and business’s priorities where we can. I want to thank them for their contributions.”
Cllr Mike Cox, BCP Council’s Portfolio Holder for Finance said: “Our budget delivers a balanced budget for 2024/25 and Medium-Term Finance Plan for the next four years, to 2028.
“This budget adds millions of pounds to our reserves and will provide a platform from which BCP can thrive in the future.”
The 2024/25 budget was approved at a meeting of the full council on 20 February.
The full budget report can be found on the council’s website here along with a recording of the meeting.