28/02/2025
Issued on behalf of Renfrewshire Council Leader Iain Nicholson
Dear Community Councillors,
As a valued partner of the Council, I wanted to write to update you on the outcome of the full Council meeting today (27 Feb) where our budget for 2025-26 was set.
It remains an extremely challenging time for local government as we face rising costs and inflation, but I’m confident that we have managed to set a budget that delivers for our communities and ensures the Council remains on a sound financial footing.
In an important milestone for the Council, the budget decisions taken mean we do not need to use reserves for this financial year and the unallocated reserve will be maintained at £10 million which is a significant step in our recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
It has allowed us to invest, and recognising the priorities of local people, we have made our largest-ever investment in Renfrewshire’s schools and nurseries, and roads infrastructure.
Across the next ten years, we will spend £90million on our roads, pathways and infrastructure as we build on the significant progress we’ve made in improving the network thanks to the previous £40million record investment we made in 2019.
Similarly, we have allocated funding from the budget that will unlock almost £170million in capital investment capacity for the next phase of the Learning Estate Strategy programme.
This is a long-term, strategic investment programme which will reshape, refurbish or rebuild schools across Renfrewshire and provide the best possible learning environment for all pupils. Further to this, we are investing £700,000 to renew existing school pitches to enhance the opportunity for outdoor sports and recreation for pupils and the community.
There will also be continued investment in our Fairer Renfrewshire programme as we support local people who affected by the rising cost-of-living. This includes maintaining the £50 winter school clothing payment to each child eligible for school clothing grant, the renewal of the successful Winter Connections programme, and a summer programme that provides activities and a healthy meal for children and young people.
We’ve invested in our environment too, including the award-winning Team Up to Clean Up campaign which will now be permanently funded and the creation of a Community Environment Team focused on the clearing of waste, litter and weeds from streets and public places. There is also more funding for our parks, play parks and open spaces.
To support the Community Asset Transfer process, we have allocated £800,000 to make improvements to land and buildings potentially available for asset transfer so they are more attractive for communities to take ownership. If there are places in your community that may suit then get in touch with our teams.
We’ve also added £50,000 to each of the Villages Investment, Retail Improvement and the Historic Buildings in Villages funds, as well as making £100,000 available for local place plans, and our events team have been boosted by a £150,000 investment to work with communities to develop and deliver a calendar of cultural events for the area’s five main town centres.
Also approved was our 5-year investment totalling £292million in Renfrewshire housing, with 2,100 homes benefitting from improvements this year and construction starting shortly on 135 new spacious, energy-efficient council homes in Gallowhill and Johnstone, with more planned across Renfrewshire in the coming years.
In setting the budget, councillors made the difficult decision to agree a 9.5% rise in council tax rates which was required to deliver our investments, meet rising costs and address our deficit. This means Band D households will now pay £1,565.43 in 2025/26.
Also confirmed was a 7.5% increase in rent levels for council tenants, the equivalent to an average of £7.15 more per week, following detailed consultation with more than 1,000 tenants. An inflationary increase in charges for services of 5% was also agreed.
To see our full budget, you can visit the council website - www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/budget.
I look forward to working with you throughout the coming year as we deliver on our investments for the benefit of everyone who lives, works or visits Renfrewshire.
Cllr Iain Nicolson
Renfrewshire Council Leader
What our council budget is, what we spend it on, the cost-of-living crisis, what we need to do, what happens next.
