Stoke-on-Trent 4.99% council tax rise and £10.5mil rescue loan

Residents in Stoke-on-Trent are set for another council tax increase as the city council unveiled its budget plans for 2026/27. Along with a proposed 4.99 per cent council tax rise – the maximum allowed without a referendum – the council will also request £10.5 million in government support to bridge funding gaps and continue delivering essential services.

According to the council, a tax hike of 4.99 per cent has become “typical” for local authorities across the country, as councils grapple with rising costs. Of the total proposed increase, two per cent will be ring-fenced for adult social care spending. Despite the increase, Stoke-on-Trent households currently have the fifth lowest average council tax bill in England and the lowest in Staffordshire.

For Band A properties, which make up almost 60 per cent of homes in the city, the proposed increase would raise the amount paid to the city council from £1,132.67 to £1,189.19. Band D households would pay £1,783.78 for the city council element of their tax bill, up from £1,699.

In addition to the city council’s charges, Stoke-on-Trent residents also contribute to police and fire precepts set separately by Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams.

Financial support and savings

The council’s draft budget outlines a request for £10.5 million in exceptional financial support (EFS) from the government to make ends meet, following £16.8 million in bailout funding provided last year. In total, the council has sought nearly £70 million in EFS support since 2024.

The budget also includes plans to make £31 million in savings, with £9.8 million categorised as ‘non-consult savings’ focused on cutting costs in back office functions. Council leaders emphasise that these changes will not directly impact frontline services, and therefore do not require public consultation.

Nonetheless, residents will be able to comment on the overall draft budget, which features the proposed tax increases and a shift in spending to several priority areas such as environmental enforcement and empty housing initiatives.

Impact of fair funding review

This is the first council budget since the government enacted its fair funding review, which has boosted Stoke-on-Trent’s core spending power by 5.4 per cent—a less substantial increase than the national average of 5.7 per cent.

While the funding review is still in its consultation phase, council leader Jane Ashworth described it as an improvement after years of austerity but noted there were still significant financial pressures, including rising demand for children’s social care services.

Ashworth said: “The fair funding review is a vast improvement on the previous 14 years of austerity. It’s a large step in the right direction. It begins to undo the damage of those Conservative years when resources were directed more to leafy shires and away from cities like ours… We knew it was never going to be a silver bullet, but we knew it was going to be the start of improving the situation.”

Focus on key local priorities

Council leaders have pledged to invest in areas that matter to residents, including tackling fly-tipping, improving gulley maintenance, and addressing housing issues. This will include £462,000 earmarked for environmental enforcement as well as doubling the capacity of the council’s empty homes team.

Cllr Ashworth defended the decision not to consult on specific savings, contrasting her administration’s approach to cuts made by previous leadership. She stated: “The changes we are making will not affect frontline services. The non-consult savings are about transition, about improving services, not cutting frontline services.

“The key thing about this budget is that we are internally juggling with money to make sure that we are able to increase our investment in the critical things that really bother people. That’s about gulley cleaning, it’s about enforcement and action on empty homes. We’ve been able to create additional resource to do those things.”

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