Council tax in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole could rise by 7.4 per cent
BCP Council awaits government approval for additional increase
Residents across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole could see a 7.4 per cent increase in council tax this year, pending government approval for an extra rise.
BCP Council has applied to raise council tax by an additional 2.4 per cent above the maximum 4.99 per cent allowed without a referendum. This increase aims to address funding pressures while protecting essential services like social care, waste collections, transport, and housing across the local area.
Financial pressures have intensified for councils across the UK, largely due to costs associated with delivering Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) services. While these services are funded by the Dedicated Service Grant (DSG), BCP Council currently carries a DSG deficit of £183.6million and forecasts a further £95.7million shortfall for 2026/27.
A temporary statutory override enables councils to disregard DSG deficits when managing their budgets, but this measure is set to end on 31st March 2028, meaning interest must still be paid on the debt.
BCP Council has additionally requested permission to use funds from the sale of buildings and assets to support everyday services. Until the government responds to these requests, £4.8million from reserves has been drawn to balance the 2026/27 budget.
"we have to prioritise those services that people absolutely rely on"
Councillor Millie Earl, Leader of BCP Council, said, “Our first responsibility as a council is really to have that balanced budget and it’s been very difficult to achieve this, especially when we’re carrying the SEND deficit which isn’t ours as a local authority to carry and is a national problem.
“Nobody wants to see their council tax rise by any amount, let alone an additional amount. But we have to prioritise those services that people absolutely rely on in our communities.
“I feel we do have a disproportionate number of costs that other local authorities don’t face. I think it is fair to say that we were expecting more from government when it came to our revenue settlements.
“It does bring problems that we have to face, that’s why keeping those things in our budget is really important, because the alternative, I think, is pretty unthinkable.”
Councillor Mike Cox CBE, Cabinet Member for Finance, added, “Actually this 2.43 per cent is effectively two per cent which wasn’t taken a few years ago. One of the previous administrations didn’t take two per cent that they could have taken and should have taken, and what we’re trying to do is to re-establish that back into the council tax. It still leaves BCP’s council tax below the average of all council tax.
“We’ve had huge challenges, obviously the key one is we’re going to have to take money from reserves this year and that goes against my principle and our principle as an administration that we don’t want to do that.
“We need to increase our reserves because of all the risks that we face. So, we’re having to do that short term but long term we will have to make savings along the way. So, it’s a huge challenge for this council and for virtually most councils particularly in the south.”