Residents and businesses in Cheltenham have just a few days left to comment on Cheltenham Borough Council's draft budget proposals for 2024/25.
Promising to continue supporting the economic growth and development of the town, the proposals set out the council's plans to improve public services while ensuring resources are available to support businesses and communities.
The key proposals include continuing to fund the Golden Valley Development, with the aim of making Cheltenham the cyber capital of the UK; bringing the council's housing service back in-house; installing 44 electric vehicle charging points across council car parks, in line with its net zero carbon goals; and continuing to support the town centre economy, including investing in the High Street and the Minster Exchange project, which is due to open in spring 2024.
Cabinet member for finance and assets, councillor Peter Jeffries, said: 'Over the last two years the council has continued to demonstrate its commitment to make Cheltenham a place where everyone can thrive, despite the financial uncertainty caused by the pandemic and the cost of living crisis.
'It is inevitable the pressures we’ve faced has meant we need to continue to deliver savings and efficiencies and protect core services for our residents. In 2024/25 we need to deliver another challenging savings strategy to balance our budget as demand for services increases and government funding is still outpaced by rising costs. Everyone is welcome to share their thoughts on the proposals during the period of consultation.'
The proposals area is available to view on Cheltenham Borough Council's website and the deadline for comments is Friday 26 January 2024.
The final budget is set to be determined by full council on Friday 23 February 2024, following the public consultation.
