South Cambridgeshire District Council has confirmed a bold programme for the year ahead – built around strengthening communities, backing local businesses and more progress towards a cleaner, greener future.
At today’s Full Council meeting (Tuesday 24 February), councillors voted to agree the Corporate Action Plan and budget that will guide the Council’s work during the next year.
Plans for the next 12 months will see major progress on the Council’s Being Green to Our Core priority, including the ongoing roll-out of weekly food waste collections to help reduce the amount of food waste being sent to landfill.
There will also be the continued construction of a solar energy park to help power the Council’s growing fleet of electric bin lorries.
Expanded funding for Service Support Grants
Alongside environmental action, the Council will significantly strengthen its support for the voluntary and community sector. A total of £900,000 over three years - £300,000 per year - has been made available through the Service Support Grants programme, offering long-term funding agreements for groups delivering community support and development services across the district.
An additional £49,650 is also available for the years ahead to support services that help prevent and relieve homelessness. This investment supports a wide range of activity including mental health and wellbeing services, advice provision, independent living support, cost-of-living assistance and community projects.
Continuing support for Mobile Warden schemes
The approved Corporate Action Plan outlines ongoing funding for Mobile Warden Schemes, which provide crucial support for older, disabled and vulnerable residents - ensuring they can live safely and independently in their own homes.
These schemes form a core part of the Council’s work to promote healthy and supported communities.
Boosting financial resilience and tackling the cost of living
With many residents still facing financial pressures, the Council will continue providing its comprehensive cost-of-living support package. A budget of £449,000 is set aside to help residents through the next two years through schemes such as emergency food and energy support, workshops, budgeting and debt advice, white goods and furniture for vulnerable people and laptops with digital training.
The Low-Income Family Tracker will continue to proactively identify households at risk of financial hardship and ensure they are claiming the benefits they are entitled to, helping prevent crises before they escalate. In the last year alone, this scheme supported South Cambridgeshire residents with more than 1,000 successful benefit claims – worth an estimated £4 million over the lifetime of those claims.
Next steps for the Greater Cambridge Local Plan
The Council continues to develop the new Greater Cambridge Local Plan through its Greater Cambridge Shared Planning (GCSP) service with Cambridge City Council. It will be the first joint Local Plan for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire – and more than 4,500 comments were received during a recent eight-week consultation. This marks a major step in planning for the region’s future - ensuring new homes, jobs and supporting facilities can come forwards sustainably while protecting the region’s environment, character and quality of life.
Elsewhere, GCSP, which at the end of 2025 was crowned the Royal Town Planning Institute’s Local Planning Authority of the Year, will be supporting the Council’s ongoing engagement with the Cambridge Growth Company and its response to the Government’s ambition to establish a development corporation to take forward the national priorities for Greater Cambridge. This is all whilst continuing to support neighbourhood planning and process over 6,000 planning applications a year.
Delivering facilities for growing communities
Elsewhere, the Action Plan continues to outline the work to deliver new community facilities at Northstowe.
This includes the new permanent community centre for phase one – the Unity Centre – which is scheduled for completion within the next month, helping ensure Northstowe has new, state of the art spaces to support its growing and thriving community.
The Council also intends to provide rental space for businesses, including via its commercial premises and space for start-ups and small businesses at its South Cambs Hall office building. Through the Visit South Cambs website, there will also be continued promotion of the district’s high streets, events and businesses.
Cllr Bridget Smith, Leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “This plan sets a positive, practical direction for the year ahead. It strengthens our commitment to the environment and invests in the things that matter most to our communities. Our focus is always on supporting local people - helping residents live well, ensuring villages and new towns remain vibrant and addressing the long‑term challenges of climate change. I am pleased councillors have backed a programme that reflects our shared ambition for a thriving, sustainable South Cambridgeshire.”
Council Tax for 2026/27
A £5.24 per year increase in Council Tax for the average Band D home was agreed by councillors at the meeting. This below‑inflation rise will help protect essential frontline services at a time when councils nationally continue to face significant cost pressures and reduced funding.
It means the average Band D charge for South Cambridgeshire District Council will be £180.64 per year from 1 April. Even with the increase, the Council is expected to remain among the lowest‑taxing 25% of district councils in the country.
The Government recently reduced the amount of Business Rates which local authorities can retain - which means councils must find ways to cover the shortfall. For South Cambridgeshire, this reduction has resulted in losing several million pounds of funding.
Cllr John Williams, Lead Cabinet Member for Resources, said: “This is a budget that puts stability first while still allowing us to invest in key priorities. The Council Tax rise is kept as low as possible, but it provides vital support for the services residents rely on - especially given the significant reduction in funding from Government. By planning carefully and managing our finances responsibly, we can continue delivering excellent services and make sure the Council remains on a strong footing for the future.”
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