Bexley Council is considering a 4.99% council tax increase from 2026/27 onwards as part of its efforts to balance the budget amid increasing financial pressures. The council faces challenges including contract inflation, difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff, and increasing demand for services such as Adult and Children Social Care, SEN transport, highways infrastructure, Strategic Planning and Planning Regulation.

The proposed increase was discussed at the Public Cabinet meeting on Thursday, 27 November 2025, as part of an update on the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2026/27 to 2029/30. According to the Medium Term Financial Strategy - Public Cabinet - November 2025 FINAL, the council faces financial challenges including contract inflation, difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff, and increasing demand for services.

Difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff are attributed to current employment conditions, where the council is unable to compete based on salary levels with other private and public service providers. This may increase costs if interim or agency staff are required to cover vacant posts.

The September 2025/Period 6 budget monitoring report forecasts an in-year overspend of £2.371m, primarily within Children's and Adult Social Care, due to increasing and more complex demand and higher unit costs for social care.

The report pack also highlights proposed policy and legislative changes that could have significant operational and financial impacts on the council, including the Children's Wellbeing Bill, and the resetting of the business rates retention system.

  • Children's Wellbeing Bill: The aim is creating a system which works with the whole family so more children and young people can thrive in their family, prioritises kinship care for children who cannot live safely with their parents, supports children in care and care leavers to live healthy and happy lives, provides a high quality of care, which all children deserve, takes action to end excessive profit-making by care providers, and works effectively across agencies and empowers professionals working within.
  • Resetting the Business Rates Retention System: The government confirmed in the policy statement, published on 28 November 2024 that it plans to reset the business rates retention system in 2026/27, this has been set out in further detail through the Resetting the business rates retention system: technical consultation and has the potential of impacting Bexley adversely by £1.928m in 2026/27 (a conservative initial estimate) and £2.302m in 2027/28 and £2.687m in 2028/29. Key changes including increased business rates multipliers and the first reset since 2013, along with a revaluation in 2026.

To mitigate the financial pressures, the council is considering transformation, service reviews, and technical reviews:

  • Transformation: The council is implementing the Future Bexley transformation portfolio to deliver large-scale, sustainable financial benefits and service improvements.
  • Service Reviews: Comprehensive service reviews are being undertaken for functions not directly within the scope of Future Bexley to ensure efficiency and value for money.
  • Technical Reviews: Technical reviews will be undertaken within Corporate Finance, along with a comprehensive review of the forecasted use of reserves.

The council is continuing to review all options to ensure it is able to deliver a balanced budget for 2026/27, including transformation, service reviews and technical reviews. The planning assumptions used in the MTFS include the council agreeing to a council tax increase of 4.99% from 2026/27 onwards, and that grant income will be received as anticipated.