Oxfordshire county council budget agreed amid reduction in government funding
10/02/2026
The council faces a £24.1 million shortfall over the next three years
by Esme Kenney, Local Democracy Reporter
Council taxes in Oxfordshire will go up by 4.99 per cent once again to fund major investments, as the council faces a huge reduction in government funding over the next three years.
The Lib-Dem run county council voted to approve its budget for 2026/27 at its full council meeting earlier today.
The Government has changed the funding formula in order to funnel more money towards more deprived parts of the country.
But this has left Oxfordshire County Council with a £24.1 million shortfall over the next three years.
During the meeting, leader of the council Liz Leffman said: “We recognise that there are areas of the country with higher levels of deprivation than our own, and it is right that the people in those places receive the support that they need.
“But this government has failed to recognise the pressures and challenges that we and other county councils face in delivering critical services across a wide rural area.
“In spite of the constraints, and because we have managed our finances very carefully over the past few years, we have not only been able to balance the budget for 2026/2027 but have included investments that will make a difference to the things which are of greatest importance to our residents.”
The council has made several investments as part of its budget, such as putting an extra £2 million a year into gully clearance, taking the total up to £3.2 million, to help reduce the risk of flooding.
It will also put £19 million into children’s services, £14 million into adult social care, £400,000 into the joint-ticket deal for the park and rides, and more investments into libraries across the county.
A further £3 million will be put into the Watlington Relief Road, on top of the £11.1 million allocated to the project in last year’s budget.
While the council was able to meet the funding gap of £5.4 million for the upcoming year, it will have to find further savings of at least £15.5 million for the year after.
Cabinet finance for finance Dan Levy described it as a “really positive budget in difficult times, which are not going to get any easier”.
He added: “We face great pressure because of funding cuts and demand pressures, and there is still lots of uncertainty in areas like SEND provision.
“Money is being redistributed away from Oxfordshire and other areas on a large scale by the government.
“However, we are confident not only that we are setting an ambitious balanced budget for next year, delivering services to residents, but also that we are ready to face the more difficult years ahead.”
The Liberal Democrats accepted the Green group’s amendments to the budget, which includes adding extra funding for vegetation clearance on footpaths and cycleways, to support households at risk of extreme heat, and for projects to support the mental and physical health impacts of climate change.
It comes after the Green group decided to withdraw their amendment to remove the funding allocated for the Watlington Relief Road.
Leader of the council Liz Leffman said: “The reason the Watlington Relief Road was in our budget in the first place was because of some of the conditions put on it by the Environment agency.
“Now we are confident that we can go ahead and there won’t be any additional funds needed to be able to build that road.”
She added that the council needed to consider how it would fill the upcoming financial gaps.
“We will make sure that by the time we get to 2028, when this council ceases to exist, the new authority or authorities will be able to start their lives in a strong financial position.”
Published: by the Banbury FM News Team
Reader's opinions
