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HomeCouncil Tax, benefits and housingHow Council Tax and Business Rates are spent

How Council Tax and Business Rates are spent

Information about how North Lincolnshire Council Tax and Business Rates are spent.

This is part of the statutory billing information we must provide in accordance with Council Tax and non-domestic rating regulations.

Your Council Tax helps to fund our work in improving outcomes for the people of North Lincolnshire. Council Tax covers just under half the cost of providing services.

Business Rates, Government grants and service charges fund the rest.

We set the Council Tax once a year and bills are issued every March.

We want our area to be the best place for our residents.

We have four priorities to realise this ambition. These are included in our Council Plan.

We also want to be the best council that we can be for our residents. We want everyone to be safe, well, prosperous and connected.

By engaging with you better and working together we can realise this ambition.

Our priorities

Keeping people safe and well

Keeping people safe and well – to achieve a longer and better quality of life for our residents

Our intention

  1. Safeguard and support everyone to live safely and independently within their families and communities
  2. Ensure the care sector is of high quality and care leavers receive the on-going support they need
  3. Reduce health inequalities and promote wellbeing.

Enabling resilient and flourishing communities

Enabling resilient and flourishing communities – to develop greater resilience and community spirit and enable people to identify and meet their ambitions.

Our intention

  1. Maintain a safe, clean and green local environment
  2. Support our volunteers and create stronger communities with access to a range of leisure, culture and other facilities
  3. Make it easier and safer to travel sustainably.

Enabling economic growth and renewal

Enabling economic growth and renewal – to ensure there are highly skilled jobs and opportunities for a highly skilled workforce and the local economy supports efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

Our intention

  1. Encourage personal ambition through access to life-long, high quality education, guidance, training and opportunities to upskill and gain experience through volunteering
  2. Regenerate town centres and expand the local economy to secure more highly skilled jobs and encourage the business sector to transition to a net-zero carbon position
  3. Work with home builders to develop high quality and environmentally sustainable homes.

Providing value for money for local tax payers

Providing value for money for local taxpayers – to ensure high quality services are provided for residents and the council is well-led.

Our intention

  1. Get it right for our customers, first time
  2. Meet our environmental responsibilities
  3. Maintain our position as a well-managed and well-governed council and remain financially sustainable.

The graphic below shows (plain text version available in the accordion below) how your Council Tax contributes to delivering the outcomes we want for local people. This includes services which are required by law, such as social care, and others which provide a real public benefit, like leisure. The analysis shows how much of a Band A Council Tax charge is spent in each area.

Graphic showing how council tax is spent. Text version in accordion below.

How we spend your Band A Council Tax

Safe

  • Adult Social Care Precept £215
  • Safer adults £404
  • Safer children £142
  • Safer places and communities £30

Well

  • Cleaner, greener, and safer spaces and environments £69
  • Good health and wellbeing £60
  • Quality housing £12
  • Vibrant leisure and culture £19

Prosperous

  • Enhanced skills, employability, excellent education and accessible childcare £45
  • Growing business, more jobs, better paid jobs £17

Connected

  • Accessible transport £62
  • Safe roads, better roads (and Travel Networks) £38
  • Thriving communities (Customer Access, Taxation and Benefits) £45

Other budgets

  • Inflation £21
  • Capital financing £68

How we will spend our budget in 2026/27

Revenue investment 2026/27

Chart showing revenue investment 2026-27

Our revenue investment of £238.8m is for the cost of running services. It will deliver the priorities shown below:

  • People are safe and well £142.5m
  • Resilient and Flourishing Communities £35.3m
  • Economic Growth -£2.1m
  • Well-Led Council £63.2m

Capital investment 2026/27

What your Council Tax helps deliver in North Lincolnshire

Council Tax and Business Rates help enable the services that support everyday life across North Lincolnshire. These are the services that many residents rely on, particularly those who are most vulnerable and who may have nowhere else to turn for help.

From protecting children and supporting older residents, to keeping communities safe and maintaining the places where we live, the council’s role is to make sure people are supported, communities are strong and the area continues to thrive.

Supporting people who need help the most

A significant part of the council’s work is focused on people who need care, protection or support.

This includes:

  • Support for older residents and adults with disabilities so people can live safely and independently
  • Care and protection for vulnerable children, including safeguarding, foster care and family support
  • Help for families facing difficulties, providing early support to prevent problems becoming crises
  • Public health services that protect residents and help people live longer, healthier lives

For many residents, these services provide essential support that is not available from anywhere else.

Strong communities and local support

The council also works alongside communities to make sure residents can access local support, activities and opportunities.

This includes:

  • Libraries, community hubs and local facilities
  • Youth activities for young people
  • Support for voluntary groups and community organisations
  • Help and advice services for residents when they need guidance or support

These services help people stay connected, active and supported in their communities.

Safe, clean and well-maintained places

The council is responsible for many of the services that keep towns, villages and neighbourhoods functioning well every day.

This includes:

  • Waste collection and recycling services
  • Maintaining roads, footpaths and local infrastructure
  • Flood resilience and environmental protection
  • Parks, green spaces and countryside sites
  • Community safety and local regulation

These services help ensure North Lincolnshire remains a safe, clean and attractive place to live and work.

Supporting opportunity and local growth

The council also works to strengthen the local economy and create opportunities for residents.

This includes:

  • Supporting local businesses and investment
  • Regeneration and improvements to town centres
  • Skills, learning and training opportunities
  • Cultural venues, sport and leisure facilities

Together these activities help create good jobs, vibrant communities and a strong future for North Lincolnshire.

Changes between the 2025/26 budget and the 2026/27 budget

image to show difference between 2025-26 budget and 2026-27

Total budget 2025/26 £217.9m

Pay and Contract Inflation £5.1m
Social care inflation £2.7m
Demand £8.7m
Capital financing £2.2m
Other £1.9m
Adjustments re funding & NNDR changes £8.0m
Efficiency & Effectiveness £-7.5m

Total budget 2026/27 £238.8m

Approved budget 2026/27

 

Budget 2025/26 Budget Gross spending 2026/27 Income 2026/27 Budget 2026/27
£M £M £M £M £M
126.8 People are safe and well 238.5 -96.1 142.5
39.0 Resilient and flourishing communities 57.7 -22.4 35.3
-3.0 Economic growth 6.4 -8.5 -2.1
55.1 Well-led council 96.3 -33.1 63.0
217.9 Total service budgets 398.9 -160.1 238.8
2.5 Fair Funding adjustments
220.4 Total adjusted service budgets 398.9 -160.1 238.8

Memorandum items

4.9 Business rate retention: Tariff and levies 6.4 6.4
2.1 Parish precept 2.2 2.2

Figures in table are subject to rounding

Funding

Your Council Tax helps to fund our work in improving outcomes for the people of North Lincolnshire. Council Tax provides just under half of the total cost of providing services. Business Rates, Government grants and service charges are also used to fund the work of the council.

Graphic to show funding allocated

Settlement Funding Assessment
2025/26 £92.7m 2026/27 £97.5m

Anticipated growth in Business Rates and growth
2025/26 £13.3m 2026/27 £16.1m

Use of reserves
2025/26 £0.6m 2026/27 £3.9m

Social Care Grants
2025/26 £0.0m 2026/27 £0.0m

Collection Fund surplus
2025/26 £4.3m 2026/27 £3.6m

Other grants
2025/26 £15.6m 2026/27 £18.9m

Council Tax requirement
2025/26 £93.9m 2026/27 £98.9m

Total base funding
2025/26 £220.4m 2026/27 £238.8m

Fair Funding Settlement adjustment
2025/26 £2.5m 2026/27 0.0m

Total funding
2025/26 £217.9m 2026/27 £238.8m

 

 

Council Tax information

To help you understand your Council Tax bill, Business Rates and the council’s budgets, we produce information each year on this website.

This is part of the statutory billing information we must provide in accordance with Council Tax and non-domestic rating regulations.

If you require any information for the financial years from 2016/17 onwards please contact us on the email address below.

Contacting us about Council Tax

You can contact us Monday to Friday, 9am to 4.30pm.

counciltax@northlincs.gov.uk
0300 3030164

If you need to write to us:

Council Tax
North Lincolnshire Council
Church Square House
30-40 High Street
Scunthorpe
DN15 6NL