All-night discussions see Kirklees budget passed with a 4.99 per cent council tax rise

According to Leader of the Council, Coun Carole Pattison, Kirklees has “really turned a corner”, following years of tough decisions and tackling significant shortfalls.

When the financial difficulties were most severe back in 2023/24, the council faced a £47m black hole in its budget.

In the upcoming financial year, the local authority needs to save £10.7m to balance the books, which is the lowest amount in three years. £6.7m of this will come from new savings. This time, cuts will revolve around reducing administrative costs and improving productivity to minimise the impact on frontline services and residents.

Some of the headlines from the 2026/27 budget include:

A 4.99 per cent council tax increase.

The loss of around 48 full time equivalent roles – some of which are already vacant.

A £215,000 investment to crack down on fly-tipping.

A total of £250,000 for gritting and winter maintenance.

The budget sets aside £15.2m to meet the needs of increasing numbers of older and disabled local people who need social care and also includes £5.9m in additional funding for services for children who need the council’s support.

A draft five-year capital programme has also been drawn up, supporting the borough’s largest major regeneration projects among other schemes.

Coun Pattison told the meeting at Huddersfield Town Hall that under Labour’s budget plans, along with the government’s three-year financial settlement, that Kirklees has “really turned the corner”.

She continued: “We are able to propose a balanced budget which is not at the expense of services, our staff or our residents. It helps us to meet our priorities, which we have already agreed tonight – protecting the vulnerable and helping all to thrive.

“We have worked hard over the last few years, despite the enormous cuts we have had to make, to bring about this stable budget. And we have had to make some really difficult decisions to do so – decisions that no Labour administration should have to do or would want to do.

“But we are now here with a stable financial platform from which to not only work with our priorities but to improve our vital services across the whole of Kirklees.”

However, for Labour’s budget to pass in its original form, the majority of all councillors would have had to vote in its favour, and this was not the case. Each of the five budget amendments proposed by the Greens, Conservatives, Lib Dems, Community Alliance and Independents/Community Independents also fell.

Lengthy talks then ensued, with members hoping to reach a compromise, though an initial proposal from Labour was turned down once again.

Several hours later, the group returned with another proposed amendment which was ultimately upheld. This featured several elements of the plans from other groups which had previously fallen including:

An increase in ward budgets by £5,000 initially, then £7,000 each year for the next five years.

A one-off sum of £15,000 for a review of grit rounds.

A one-off payment of £50,000 to set up climate bonds to raise money for environmental projects, plus around £1m in capital spread over five years to support the initiative.

£70,000 per year until 2030/31 for parking enforcement.

£14,000 each year for the next five years to extend the opening hours of household waste recycling centres (HWRC) over the Christmas period.

A one-off £15,000 to commission a report on cross border opportunities in North Kirklees for the use of HWRCs.

£38,000 in 2026/27, followed by an annual £77,000 until 2030/31 for Pride in Place schemes which aim to enhance smaller residential and local shopping areas.

The changes will be funded by measures including:

Scrapping a £20,000 per year payment to support bids to the government’s Town of Culture initiative from 2027/28 onwards.

The axing of around £6m worth of borrowing for the final phase of Our Cultural Heart.

Removing cash from some of Labour’s budget priorities including highways road safety and lining, and additional resource for tree management.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) understands that the budget with the above amendment was voted through by members of the Labour, Lib Dem and Green groups.