As a Council, we are legally required to set a balanced budget each year. That means the money we receive from the Scottish Government, Council Tax and other sources must meet the cost of delivering services and ongoing investment to protect and improve communities.
Our revenue budget has been set at £472m for 2024/25 which includes ring fenced grants of £6.67m. This budget relates to all services except housing, which is funded entirely from money we receive from rent.
| Service |
2023/24 Budget
£'000 |
2024/25 Budget
£'000 |
| Children's Services |
251,178 |
278,166 |
| Social Work Adult Services |
4,023 |
4,156 |
| Place Services |
45,120 |
41,843 |
| Transformation, Communities & Corporate Services |
42,886 |
38,326 |
| Sub-Total |
343,207 |
362,491 |
| Integration Joint Board |
91,076 |
92,386 |
| Joint Valuation Board |
1,494 |
1,532 |
| Capital Charges |
4,569 |
8,536 |
| Total Net Expenditure |
440,346 |
464,945 |
| Aggregate External Finance |
343,164 |
363,722 |
| COVID Reserves |
3,400 |
- |
| Service Concessions |
15,290 |
22,532 |
| Council Tax (see below) |
78,491 |
78,691 |
| Total Income |
440,345 |
464,945 |
| Council Tax |
2023/24 |
2024/25 |
| Estimated yield of £1 Council Tax |
£57,552 |
£57,699 |
| Council Tax (Band D) |
£1,363.82 |
£1,363.82 |
| Product |
£78,491,000 |
£78,691,000 |
How will the budget be split
| Service | £'000s |
|---|
| Childrens Services | 278,166 |
| Place Services | 41,843 |
| Social Work Adult Services | 4,156 |
| Transformation, Communities & Corporate Services | 38,326 |
| Integration Joint Board | 92,386 |
| Joint Valuation Board | 1,532 |
| Capital Charges | 8,536 |
How is your Council Tax spent?
The Scottish Government's assessment of the spending need for Falkirk Council is £5,619 for every house.
The Council's proposed spending amounts to £6,201 per house.
How your council tax is spent is illustrated below based on a Band D property's Council Tax bill for 2024/25.
Education: £668.25
Adult Social Care (including the HSCP): £299.64
Children's Social Work: £103.68
Corporate Services: £103.51
Other Services & Costs: £63.46
Waste and Street Cleaning: £48.85
Sports, Culture & Leisure: £30.98
Roads & Grounds: £22.77
Libraries: £9.55
Supporting Businesses: £8.37
Joint Valuation Board: £4.76
How Council funding works
The money comes from a number of sources, the most important of which is grants from the Scottish Government.
The chart below shows the various sources of the funding we will receive.
After taking account of Scottish Government grants, National Non-Domestic Rates and other sources of funding, we raise the rest of the money we need from Council Tax, which will fund 16.7% of our net expenditure.
| Source | £'000s |
|---|
| Government Grants | 297,420 |
| Non-Domestic Rates | 72,962 |
| Council Tax | 78,691 |
| Service Concessions | 22,532 |
| Reserves | 0 |