'Rare' council underspend to help with cost of living
The council spent £20m less than expected last year.
Nottingham City Council is set to offer increased assistance with the cost of living, following an unexpected underspend of millions of pounds, according to the authority's deputy leader. This marks a significant turnaround for the council, which states it now has its "house in order" after years of financial difficulties.
Earlier this summer, it was revealed that the Labour-run council had spent over £20 million less than anticipated in the 2025-26 financial year. Ethan Radford, the deputy leader, indicated that while details are still being finalized, the council plans to announce a series of one-off initiatives soon. These measures are "designed to alleviate pressure on individuals and businesses."
Radford explained, "Many of these policies will be things that we're piloting for one year, two years, to see what impact it has." He added, "What it should be viewed as is a recovery package for parts of the city where it doesn't need year-on-year investment, but it needs an immediate injection of funding so it can get off the ground and have an immediate improvement."
A portion of the funds will also be allocated to addressing city centre issues, including repairing more potholes and enhancing cleanliness. Radford specified, "Getting rid of chewing gum, getting rid of grotty looking bins, getting rid of graffiti, the things that are unsightly that none of us want to see." He also mentioned that the council intends to provide additional support for pensioners.
However, the underspend will not be used to offset any potential future increases in council tax. Radford stated, "At this time, we think it's better value for the taxpayer to take that £20m underspend and invest it into the services that they want to see improvement in."
The council, which effectively declared bankruptcy in 2023, has recently shown signs of financial recovery. Commissioners appointed in 2024 to assist in running the authority departed earlier this year, replaced by "ministerial envoys" with reduced powers. Radford described an underspend as "quite rare," viewing it as proof of the council's improved financial standing.
Conversely, Kirsty L Jones, leader of the Nottingham People's Alliance, suggested that the underspend might be a consequence of "under-delivery of services in the first place." She commented, "I think when they've cut so deeply previously, it's not going to cause any sort of recovery in the services people expect, paying higher council tax for fewer services as they've seen throughout the years." Jones also expressed skepticism about the impact of the funds, stating, "Helping with the cost of living - I don't know how they can meaningfully do that with £20m and expect to spend it on other things too."
The proposed use of the underspend funds is scheduled for discussion at a meeting of the council's executive board on Tuesday. Subsequent approval from the full council will be required, as it represents a modification to the authority's annual budget.