West Dunbartonshire Council Budget consultation 2024/25

About the Council

Our vision is to lead positive change – delivering services which build on the strengths and resilience of our neighbourhoods and supporting all residents to fulfil their individual potential and that of their communities.  We are focused on tackling inequality and disadvantage, working with our partners locally and nationally, investing in people, using our resources wisely, speaking up for West Dunbartonshire, and being inclusive and open. These are laid out in our Strategic Plan 2022-27.

2023/24 Investments and budget savings

West Dunbartonshire Council is on the frontline of supporting the most vulnerable people in our communities. We are committed to helping them and their families, in 2023/24 we made a number of commitments to support families with the cost of living crisis, support our communities and improve health and wellbeing.  View the full report of our investments and savings.

Where our money comes from

In 2023/24, 13% of the Council’s funding for services will come directly from council tax, with the rest coming from charging for services, government grants, non-domestic rates and use of limited Council reserves.

Most of the funding can only be used for the purpose it has been given and cannot be allocated to day-to-day council spending.

Revenue Budget: this is income that pays for the day-to-day delivery of Council services. It is predominantly made up of Scottish Government grants, Council Tax, Non-Domestic rates and charges for services; this budget is the main focus of the budget conversations for 2024/25.

Capital Budget: Capital projects are funded from a variety of sources including directly from the Scottish and UK Government (for example Levelling Up Funding) of which some is ring-fenced for specific projects. There are also some externally sourced grants or income from capital receipts. The remainder needs to be met through borrowing.

Examples of current capital projects are the regeneration of town centres including Glencairn House. This is a historic building which will be refurbished and put into use again. This is funded from Levelling up Funding which is ring-fenced for the specific purposes it was awarded. The Vale of Leven Cemetery will be extended and there is funding to improve streets and cycle lanes as well as investment in roads and flooding works.

Ring-fenced funding: this is money that comes various sources (mainly Scottish Government grants) that have to be used on specific things such as healthcare and teaching. The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is also ring-fenced, this is money that comes from household rents and can only be spent in housing areas.

What we spend on council services

In 2023/24, the Council will spend just over £301 million on services. This is our total gross expenditure budget. In addition, we will also spend approximately £92.814m on capital projects; our capital programme includes investing in the regeneration of our town centres and infrastructure, new school buildings, new energy-efficient social housing, and other service needs reflecting the council’s priorities.

Income from Council Tax

In 2023/24 we made the difficult decision to implement a Council Tax increase of 5% with the knowledge that the most vulnerable will be protected from this, through support mechanisms in place.

That 5% increased an annual bill from £1,332.36 to £1,398.98 (for a Band D property - the average council tax band). This equates to an increase of £1.28 per week. This generated £1,915,000 extra revenue for the Council to fund the delivery of essential services.

The table below provides an example of how much additional income would be generated if we increase council tax in 2024/25.

Have your say

You can have your say on our budget proposals between 18th August 2023 and 30th September 2023 by visiting the WDC Budget consultation page and completing the online survey.