Bedford Borough Council has set out plans to save £11.5 million next year as part of a major budget consultation.
The plan, agreed by the council’s executive last night (Wednesday), includes proposals for new charges for green waste collections, reduced grant funding for voluntary groups, and a review of library services.
The savings package is part of a programme to plug a £32.5 million budget gap in 2026–27, rising to £58.6 million by 2029–30.
Earlier this year, an independent review by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) warned that Bedford Borough Council’s finances were under “significant risk” without immediate steps to stabilise spending and restore reserves.
Read: Report says Bedford Borough Council must take urgent action to avoid bankruptcy
The report said firm leadership would be vital to guide the council through a recovery plan and avoid potential government oversight, noting that “politically challenging decisions” will almost certainly be required.
Cllr Marc Frost (Conservative, Wixams and Wilstead), the portfolio holder for finance, told the meeting the proposals represented “the first steps in returning our council to financial stability”.
He added that a second phase would follow later this year, focusing on debt recovery, property management, staffing levels and contracts.
The proposed savings span four main themes:
- Managing demand better – £3.6m
- Developing the workforce – £684,620
- Effective contract management – £600,000
- Service offer changes – £6.6m
Measures include major service reviews in adult and children’s social care, contract renegotiations, restructuring within the council, and wide-ranging cuts to discretionary spending.
Among the headline items are:
- Green waste charging, expected to raise £850,000 from November 2025
- Suspension of the four-hour free parking scheme at Allhallows and Lurke Street multi-storey car parks, saving £395,000 in the first year, plus a wider review of parking charges
- £40,000 cut to Bedfordshire Community and Voluntary Service (CVS), alongside the deletion of Rural and Climate Change grants worth £200,000 combined
- £93,000 in library savings, to be achieved through “deliverable policy options” that comply with the council’s legal duty to provide a “comprehensive and efficient” service
- Freezing or rationalising councillors’ allowances (£100,000), removing the Town Twinning budget, reducing maintenance budgets, and cutting the mayor’s office staffing by one post
The consultation will run from 20 October to 18 November, with final decisions to be made in January 2026. Details on how Bedfordians can take part will be released shortly.
Read: Council confirms four-hour free parking to pause as Bedford Borough faces financial pressures
Politically charged
The most politically charged exchange of the night came when Cllr Michael Headley (Lib Dem, Putnoe) asked for a clear assurance that if residents opposed charging for green waste, the proposal would be dropped.
Mayor Tom Wootton (Conservative) replied, “We have a consultation for a reason. It’s no point having it if you’re not going to listen… if there’s a majority against it, we will not [bring it in]”.
Cllr Headley welcomed the “clarity” but warned that introducing such a charge would amount to “a thinly disguised increase in tax” and add to pressures on household budgets.
Cuts to voluntary sector funding also came under scrutiny. Cllr Lucy Bywater (Green, Castle and Newnham) raised concerns about the £40,000 reduction to CVS, describing the organisation as “a lynchpin of the voluntary sector in Bedford and across the county”.
The mayor acknowledged the sensitivity of the issue but said: “We’d be remiss with the council being in the financial problems it is without lifting every stone and looking at everything”.
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On libraries, Cllr Bywater also asked for transparency over what changes were being considered.
The mayor promised a written response but said he did not want to “provoke people to panic and think libraries are closing”, emphasising the statutory duty to provide a comprehensive service.
Cllr Frost warned that the timetable for decisions was tight, with the provisional government funding settlement expected in mid-December, leaving “very little time” to make changes.
He said officers had “been working day and night through the summer” to identify savings but admitted progress in some areas, including debt collection and property management, had been slower than hoped.
Consultation responses will inform the final budget to be debated early next year.
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
