Chorley residents are being asked for their views on the budget proposals ahead of a full council meeting in March, where the final budget will be considered.
The consultation is open until 6 February and can be found at www.chorley.gov.uk/consultations
Chorley Council is proposing a balanced and ambitious budget, with continued investment to ensure that the borough can thrive and become an even better place to live, work and visit.
Some key areas identified in the proposed budget are:
- £638,000 to help house families who are experiencing homelessness with the delivery of temporary accommodation.
- £188,000 for aids and adaptations to help residents to retain independence and ensure homes are safe and accessible.
- £4.5 million to enhance local leisure facilities and support health and wellbeing through a refurbishment and decarbonisation programme, including improvements to All Seasons Leisure Centre.
- £25,000 to commission a project to support school readiness in the borough.
- £44 million over multiple years, including £20 million from central government grant funding, to continue to deliver the town centre transformation programme.
- £1.5 million to improve recycling and reduce the environmental impact by implementing statutory weekly food waste collections introduced by central government.
- £479,000, including £100,000 grant funding, to complete renovations to the West Wing of Astley Hall.
- £6.6 million over multiple years to deliver a residential development at the Woodlands site alongside space for educational and commercial use to meet the needs of the community.
Councillor Peter Wilson, Deputy Leader of Chorley Council said, “We have been working hard to reduce our costs and maintain services to protect what matters most to our residents and I am pleased that despite financial uncertainty, we have been able to propose a balanced budget.
“We have continued to generate income to enable the council to be less reliant on government funding, including through the Market Walk Shopping Centre, Strawberry Meadows Industrial Units, Strawberry Fields Digital Office Park, Logistics House, and the Primrose Gardens and Tatton Gardens extra care schemes.
“We’ve also changed the way that we work, such as sharing more services with South Ribble Borough Council, and finding new ways to deliver services more efficiently, such as through digital and automated processes and reviewing staffing structures and service models.
“Like households across the borough, Chorley Council has faced increases in inflation over recent years that have driven up costs. The council is receiving less due to national funding redistributions and has seen increasing demand for public services. Despite this, funding to the council has not increased in line with inflation, placing pressure on budgets and service delivery.
To tackle the ongoing financial challenges and to ensure continued excellent service delivery, the council is proposing an increase in their portion of council tax of 2.99%, which is the equivalent of 12p more a week for a band D property.
The council will continue to support those most vulnerable and in need of additional council tax support through the council tax support scheme.
The opt-in Garden Waste collection charge will be frozen this year, remaining at £40.
Councillor Wilson continued, “It's never an easy decision to raise our council tax, but this, alongside making savings and efficiencies is the only way we can still support our communities each day.
“Our council tax rate remains one of the lowest in Lancashire, and we’ve been able to freeze our garden waste collection charges.
“We are an ambitious council who regularly goes above and beyond what is usually expected of a local authority. In the last 12 months we have supported housing where residents can live well by working with property owners to improve housing standards across the borough and supported our local economy by implementing a targeted business grants programme to encourage the growth and expansion of new and different types of businesses in the borough.
“We improved the bus station and bus shelter network and delivered a programme of improvements to our parks and open spaces. We are also promoting healthy and safe communities through our social prescribing service supporting our residents with the cost-of-living and providing a range of ongoing interventions around food, fuel poverty, debt, and housing.”
You can see the full proposals and respond to the consultation at www.chorley.gov.uk/consultations. The closing date is 6 February, and other versions of the consultation can be requested at council offices.
The consultation responses will be collated and considered as part of the full council meeting in March 2026.