Council faces £7m overspend due to high demand
Laura Coffey/BBCA council is reporting a provisional end-of-year overspend of £7m for the 2025-26 financial year on its £431.8m net revenue budget.
Reform UK took control of West Northamptonshire Council in May 2025 after the 2025-26 budget had been set by the previous Conservative-run authority.
The council report, to be considered by Cabinet, said in adults' and children's social care, rising costs linked to the volume and complexity of care packages remained a key driver of financial pressure.
John Slope, Cabinet Member for Finance, said "it became clear early in the financial year that [the budget] was already under pressure." The Conservatives countered that Reform had been "failing to control spending".
The local authority had previously forecast an overspend of £9.6m, but had reduced that figure by more than £2m over the course of the year.
The report stated the authority had used £11.4m of general budget contingencies, which were set aside in the budget for risks that may occur during the financial year.
Slope added: "We inherited a budget that had already been set.
"We delivered over £20m of savings, we balanced our housing account with a surplus, and we kept the overall overspend to 1.6% of budget.
"That is not comfortable, but it reflects an organisation working hard in very difficult circumstances."
The Conservative group leader Daniel Lister said: "Reform inherited a balanced budget when they took over this council in May 2025, yet their own monitoring reports confirmed three times over that they were failing to control spending, resulting in what is now a £7m overspend.
"Ticking off an existing savings plan is not the same as getting a grip on a deteriorating financial position, and the only new ideas this administration has been able to produce are cutting services and increasing charges on residents."
Do you have a story suggestion for Northamptonshire? Contact us below.
Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
