This council is careful with taxpayers' money, providing value for money services and bringing additional money into the district to support our community. - Councillor Jeremy Gardner, standing for re-election as councillor for St Mary's on 7 May.
Our Labour Adur council administration is:
- supporting the most vulnerable in our community
- cleaning up our town and village centres
- cherishing our environment
- balancing the books – using your money wisely
We are delivering on our pledge to work with our community to make Adur fairer and greener. The budget set for 2026/27 will allow us to do more to renew our towns and villages.
We are careful with your money:
- Adur and Worthing councils have saved more than £4m over the past two years by scrupulously checking value for money and reorganising the council to work more efficiently
- Our council tax increase this year is below inflation
- We are on course to balance the books again
Adur councillors of all political parties and none unanimously backed our Labour administration’s proposals at February’s budget-setting council meeting.
Adur leader councillor Jeremy Gardner said:
“Our budget is about:
- Getting things done
- turning things around after years of neglect and austerity
- Supporting those struggling most with the cost of living
- Planting trees, working for the environment
- Fixing council homes
- more affordable homes to rent
- Working with the community and listening
- Being careful with your money
- We’re on course to balance the books again
- Bringing money in from outside Adur to help our community”.
An overarching pledge by this administration was that we would use the money given to us by you, the taxpayer, carefully and to ensure council services are efficient and value for money. Once again this Labour administration is on course to balance the books while delivering for our communities.
Jeremy Gardner said: We have spent within our means but like every other organisation we face inflation and we have increasing demands on our services. The council tax will rise by 2.99% – an increase of 20p a week on the average Band D bill.”
Our budget has proposals for growth including:
- £540,000 for food waste collection, starting in September
- £300,000 for temporary accommodation for residents experiencing homelessness
- £120,000 in homelessness prevention
Our plans for investment in services include:
- £25,000 to implement the Renters’ Rights act, an act to be welcomed which gives this council more power to enforce, for example, quality and safety standards in privately rented properties
- £40,000 additional for cleaning public conveniences.
An amendment from Shoreham Beach councillor Joss Loader was accepted. This was to spend £10,000 on a much-needed upgrade of the Shoreham Beach Green public toilets.
The budget will increase resources going into our services to prevent homelessness and to provide temporary accommodation where homelessness is unavoidable.
Jeremy Gardner said: “Years of austerity has affected communities, families, individuals, struggling to pay bills, struggling to keep a roof over their head.
“Who are our residents facing homelessness? Most can no longer stay in family or friends’ accommodation, a third become homeless after losing privately rented accommodation, in many cases because landlords wanted to sell or relet their property. Domestic abuse can be another reason.
“At the end of November 161 Adur households were in temporary accommodation. This is a huge cost to the council (the cost of funding temporary accommodation for Adur residents now takes up 16% of our budget.) But let’s not lose what we are talking about here – hardship for too many families, disruption to lives and the schooling and friendships for too many children.”
“We are taking action to support those most challenged by the cost of living, those most in need, and more action to prevent homelessness. That’s what we mean about a fairer Adur – a fair deal for those most vulnerable and a fair deal for the council tax payer; using money wisely.”