Bath and North-East Somerset Council has passed it’s budget for the financial year 2026/27, commencing April 2026.

Changes to central government funding, plus overspends from the 25/26 financial year mean that the budget includes both savings by reducing services, and notional increases in income by increasing service charges. This is in addition to incorporating the maximum allowed general council tax increase for everyone of 4.99%, in order to achieve a notional “balanced” budget, i.e. a budget which does not incur additional borrowing or special measures support.

In order to achieve this, net savings of at least £7.2M are required. This is a combination of extra income and reduced services/cost-cutting.

The practicality of some of these measures is open to question, but they are presented here as given. (Budget paper, Appendix 5 – Revenue Savings Monitor).

So how might these changes affect you?

Income

Garden waste fees: increase from £57 to £70 per year.
Reduced care packages by re-evaluating claimants
Self-funded care delivery fees increased to reflect actual costs.
Increased parking charges, vehicle-size  based charges, park and ride increase to £4.00
Increase in street parking permit fees
Increase Registrar fees (births,deaths,marriages etc.)
More parking and yellow box enforcement charges

All services are subject to inflationary fee increases.

Expenses

If you work for the Council, staff savings are on the way, but not specified as how.
Removal of in-house pest control services

Other expense savings are, at best risky and at worst, fanciful with low confidence in the associated narrative by council officers.

For example,

‘As a result of a continuation of visitor numbers below the budgeted 1.1m at the Roman Baths, the Service has put forward an adjustment to the MTFS and does not anticipate delivering this savings target. At Quarter 3 there is an expected shortfall of £2.172m on the net income target of the service.’

or

‘Both new and historic savings targets are challenging to meet until the
estate is rationalised and running costs of existing assets are reduced.’

Highways Maintenance and Traffic Management

If potholes are your thing, this is the list of road resurfacing for 26/27.

Cranmore Place, Lympsham Green & Fullers Way – Odd Down
Penn Hill Road & Anchor Road – Weston
West Lea Road – Weston
South Lea Road – Weston
Fox Hill – Combe Down
Dunster Road – Keynsham
B3110 Midford Road – Midford
A4175 Bristol Road – Keynsham
Weatherly Avenue – Odd Down
Charlton Road – Keynsham
St James Parade & James Street West – Bath City Centre
Triangle North & Stanley Road West – Oldfield Park
Rock Road – Keynsham
Lays Drive (Part) – Keynsham
Sladebrook Road & Lytton Gardens – Southdown
Lansdown View – Southdown
Haycombe Drive Phase 1 – Whiteway
Highland Road – Twerton
Woollard Lane – Whitchurch
Frys Bottom – Chelwood
Moorledge Road – Chew Magna

Overall, £9.6m will be spent (this is largely from central funding and includes the ‘pothole grant’, although there is only a small amount directly for pothole repair. )

Pedestrian Schemes

St Keyna Primary School, Keynsham – enhancements to pedestrian crossing (Charlton Rd)
Weston Lane, Bath – zebra crossing near King Edward’s School
A368 Wick Road, Bishop Sutton – zebra crossing at primary school
A37 Camley surgery pedestrian crossing
North Road, Timsbury – pedestrian safety improvements including Lansdown View junction, speed tables and speed limit changes
St John’s Road, Bathwick – pedestrian safety improvements
Safe crossing place for walking route to Moorlands School, Bath
Upper Bloomfield Road, Bath – crossing and dropped kerb to improve pedestrian route to local shops
A362, Farrington Gurney – signalised crossing near Manor Farm
Weston Lane, near Montrose Cottages, Bath – safety improvements
A368, Bishop Sutton – footway between Redlands Lane and tennis club
Avon Mill Lane, Keynsham – zebra crossing at entrance to Memorial Park61
St Saviour’s Road, Lambridge, Bath – build-out to aid crossing at Spa Lane
A367 Wells Road at Elm Tree Avenue, Westfield – footway and crossing improvements
Kilmersdon Road, Radstock – new crossing and speed reduction measures
Pedestrian signal improvements (existing sites)
City centre mobility improvements

Speed limits changes

20mph limits:
Bath: Lansdown Road (north of St Stephen’s Church), Newbridge Hill (between Oldfield School and Chelsea Road),
Newbridge Road (between Old Newbridge Road and Upper Bristol Road),
North Road/Bradford Road (between Ralph Allen Drive and Midford Road),
London Road (between A46 roundabout and Gloucester Road and Bathavon North)
Radstock: Kilmersdon Road (between Haydon Gate and Meadow View)
Mendip: West Harptree, Bristol Road (B3114) to junction past Blue Bowl Inn
Westfield: Cobblers Way
Timsbury: Loves Hill/Timsbury Bottom & Priors Hill
Farmborough: Feasibility study of rural lane speed limits
Pensford: A37 within the village
Stanton Drew: Bromley Road
Chew Valley: Newtown
Other speed limits:
Keynsham: Durley Hill to 30mph

There are many more parts to this budget, if you would like more details on something that might affect you, let us know in the comments and we’ll try and dig it out.