Moray Council shares updated budget position for 2025/26
Moray Council has shared its updated budget position following indications of its grant settlement from the Scottish Government.
At a meeting of the full council, elected members also considered the analysis of responses to the budget consultation undertaken with residents across October and November 2024. Full details of this can be found online at moray.gov.uk/budget2025.
The Scottish Government has indicated Moray Council’s grant from the General Revenue Grant and Non-Domestic Rates funding will be £228.114 million. Some of this is directed funding which must be spent as set out by the Scottish Government, however around £1m of additional funding is available for the council to determine how it is used. However, the impact of National Insurance contribution changes adds further pressure to budgets with no clear indication of the extent of the funding to be passed on by the UK government through the Scottish Government to Local Authorities to cover this.
This settlement, which still has elements to be confirmed, alongside the £4.1m of savings already identified for 2025/26 brings the budget gap to £8.9m, leaving £4.8m still to find.
Other sources of income, such as council tax, have yet to be discussed but the indication from respondents to the budget survey show a willingness to accept an average of 9% increase to help mitigate the negative impact on services that savings will otherwise have. This, along with other charges for services, will be discussed at future meetings of the council.
The £4.1m of proposed savings so far identified is made up of service efficiencies including: increasing gully cleaning from a five to three-year cycle; removal of vacant posts and restructuring across a number of services; reducing outsourcing of corporate building repairs and street lighting; reduction in mail room to external delivery frequency; and bringing in new charges for specific planning application functions.
It is also proposed that part of the additional budget identified in 2024/25 for Outreach Youth Workers is removed and council run Early Learning and Childcare settings operating a year-round model is being reviewed to bring them in-line with term-time settings and to meet current parental preferences.
Final decisions on the above proposals, which are detailed online, will be taken when Full Council meets to agree the budget in February.
Moray Council Leader, Cllr Kathleen Robertson, said of the budget: “We knew there would be more tough financial decisions to make this year and there are always unknown pressures to contend with, like pay awards, the impact of inflation and interest rates. We can at least acknowledge the slightly better than anticipated settlement from the Scottish Government for our grant though.
“However, we must continue on our trajectory of transformation if we’re to be passing a sustainable budget year-on-year, which is our ultimate goal. Alongside that goal is ensuring people in Moray receive the services they need to help us meet our aim to tackle poverty and inequality, build a stronger, greener vibrant economy and support thriving, resilient and empowered communities.
“We’ll continue to work with partners to ensure collaborative efforts mean sustainable services for Moray, not necessarily delivered in the way we’ve been used to but in a modern and accessible way.”
Moray Council will also meet in February to set service charges for the year ahead, Council Tax levels, and the final budget.