The Isle of Wight Council has launched a public consultation to give Islanders the opportunity to have their say on how it should spend its money next year.
The annual budget consultation is now underway – seeking feedback from all Island residents about the priorities they want to see in the coming year. These views will help shape the draft budget for the 2025/26 financial year.
Each year the council is required to balance its budget so that spending does not exceed income from council tax, grants and other sources.
Councillor Ian Stephens, Cabinet member for finance, says:
“Budget setting is a complex matter and whatever we do, we can’t please everyone.
“Although the Island’s finances are well managed, local authority funding continues to be extremely challenging and the Isle of Wight Council is not alone in having to consider difficult decisions to deliver a balanced budget.
“Higher costs and rapidly rising demand have increased the cost of providing vital services to residents. As a result, the way in which we use our financial resources is becoming more constrained.
“Feedback from residents is essential in informing decision-making and making sure that the budget is spent on the right things. We hope lots of people will take this opportunity to tell us what is important to them.
Article continues below this advertisement “In setting the budget for next year we remain committed to working with other organisations and residents to deliver services we can be proud of.”
Every year, the council spends around £500million providing public services that Islanders use every day. Most of the council’s budget is spent on looking after those people who need us most, through adult social care and children’s services.
The council won’t know exactly what its settlement from the government is until later in December.
Council leader, Councillor Phil Jordan, adds:
“Every year we have to make increasingly difficult decisions about how to spend the money we receive. Higher costs and increasing demand mean our funding doesn’t go as far as it used to, and this can only be resolved in the long term by central government.
“We continue to make our case to senior ministers for an improved ‘Island Deal’ to provide additional funding for the additional and unique costs that we face by providing council services on the Island. Having said that, any additional funding is unlikely to cover the extent of the financial pressures being experienced and therefore the council will need to make savings.
“In identifying areas to make savings the priority is to protect the most vulnerable residents, minimise the impact on frontline services and work to transform services to ensure they continue to be delivered effectively efficiently and focused on our customers.”
Residents are encouraged to complete the consultation survey here and have their say by Sunday 26th January. Responses are anonymous and the survey should take no more than 10 minutes to complete.
People can also email any comments or suggestions to [email protected]. Printed copies of the survey are available on request.
Consultation feedback will inform a draft of the budget, which will be considered by the council’s Cabinet and Full Council in February 2025.
We could all tell how we would like it spent, but as we all know, they will just ignore common sense and just line their own pockets. Jordon needs to go, Bacon needs to go. I don’t see any change of behaviour from this lot and god help us if Keir Stalins government gives councils even MORE power to do just what they want.
Donna Jones could become the mayor and then we’d all be living in utopia. Oh happy days.
We need a Mayor to control the island.
Speeding is out of control and parking on
Pavements is the normal.
I was walking along Shanklin Esplanade this
afternoon and the pavement outside
The Pink Beach Hotel was unpassanle due to
trucks parked on the pavement.
WHERE ARE THE COUNCILS G’ESTAPO ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS TO STOP THIS. or are they given
backhanders to turn a blind eye!
Come on Jordan do what we pay you to do
Run the island
And there it is. ‘Enough’ should be mayor. Why didn’t we think of that earlier?
They already do what they want.
Time to scrap working from home and
get staff back in the office.
A reduction in work force would save money.
Councils employ to much unnesseccary
baggage that is costing US the tax payers too
much money.
Spend wisely on things that time has shown too work and not for short term gains
They should stop wasting money on the
Floating Bridge.
Stop increasing Council Taxes.
Stop charging people 24/7 364 days a year
Parking charges eg. SCRAP the £2.00 nightly
charge.
Scrap toilet charges. I see the nee toilet block at
Yaverland will be charging people.
People don’t want to pay to use toilets, that is
why we pay Council tax etc.
Spending plans for all local authorities need to be prefaced by flagging up that 85% of loacal authority spending goeson adult social care (looking after vulnerable adults) and on children’s services (looking after vulnerable children). Councils have statutory obligations to provide these services so have no choice. Therefore, only the remaining 15% is available to be spent on those things which the council canexercise any discretion over. The Fire and Police precept elements of the Council Tax are also outside of the control of local councils. So before too many fingers are wagged, let us bear in mind these constraints.