Hampshire Council faces record £198.9m budget shortfall

Summarised from 3 outlets · 5 reports · Updated 5 Nov, 17:37 · Archive

Hampshire County Council is consulting on ways to address a record £198.9m budget shortfall for 2027/28.

Hampshire County Council is consulting residents on options to address a record £198.9m budget shortfall for 2027/28. The consultation runs until 13 December. The council has already made £95m in savings last year with a further £40m of efficiencies built into this year's budget, and says it has exhausted many options to cut costs and increase efficiency.

Options under consideration include new on-street parking charges, higher parking fees and increased charges at country parks. The council is also considering charging residents to visit recycling centres or for concessionary bus travel, though changes to the law would be needed before either could happen. Fees for weddings and civil partnerships could rise. The £198.9m shortfall already assumes a 4.99 per cent council tax increase in 2027/28, which would add £84.33 a year to the county council part of a Band D bill. Each extra one per cent above 4.99 per cent would bring in around £9.4m, and the council is asking residents what they think about rises above this level.

Other options include only carrying out essential health and safety repairs to council buildings, stopping staff training and replacing IT equipment only when it breaks. The council accepts delaying this spending could cause disruption or cost more in the future. Further service cuts are also being considered, though the council has not yet said which services could be affected. Previous savings programmes have included cuts to community transport, withdrawal of some bus routes and grants for community groups, reduced road maintenance spending and longer periods without street lighting.

Council leader Nick Adams-King said the authority has a responsibility to make every penny count and protect services residents rely on. The funding gap continues to grow, driven by rising demand for care and support. He noted that every month around 45 more older residents need the council's help paying for care after their own savings run out, and that the council is also supporting more adults and children with increasingly complex needs. Together, by March 2028, the measures taken will have reduced costs by a total of £770m since 2008, whilst maintaining council tax rates at one of the lowest in the country.

How it is being reported

• Residents invited to have their say on options to cut council's £198.9m budget gapThe authority is facing a projected shortfall of £198.9m for 2027/28 and says it has already exhausted many options to cut costs and increase efficiency.Andover Advertiser · 5 Nov, 17:00
• County council seeks views on plans to tackle £198.9m budget shortfallThe authority is facing a projected shortfall of £198.9m for 2027/28 and says it has already exhausted many options to cut costs and increase efficiency.Basingstoke Gazette · 5 Nov, 17:00
• Council could cut services and introduce new charges as £199m budget gap loomsHampshire County Council could make further cuts to services, increase charges and delay essential spending as it faces a record £198.9m budget shortfall next year.Romsey Advertiser · 4 Nov, 15:52
• Council could cut services and introduce new charges as £199m budget gap loomsHampshire County Council could make further cuts to services, increase charges and delay essential spending as it faces a record £198.9m budget shortfall next year.Andover Advertiser · 4 Nov, 15:52
• Council could cut services and introduce new charges as £199m budget gap loomsHampshire County Council could make further cuts to services, increase charges and delay essential spending as it faces a record £198.9m budget shortfall next year.Basingstoke Gazette · 4 Nov, 15:52

In this story: Hampshire County Council · Nick Adams-King · Hampshire

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