People in East Lothian are being asked for their views on the council’s budget priorities for 2026/27.
We all benefit from East Lothian’s success; it’s important that we’re all part of the process that will support it. I hope people will take part in this consultation and share their views to inform our budget decision-making.
- Budget consultation launches for financial year 2026/27
- Public asked for views on services, savings and council tax
- Council needs to save £10.356m to balance its budget in 2026/27
- Consultation closes 12 November 2025
A public consultation has been launched to gather opinions on the council’s overall priorities and to gauge views on a range of matters from services to council tax levels.
A cross-party group of councillors will meet in the months ahead to discuss the authority’s spending plans for the new financial year, before the budget is formally approved at an East Lothian Council meeting in February 2026.
The local authority has an annual budget of over £372m to provide public services in the area. A growing population driven by nationally-set housing targets, rising demand for services and increased costs are causing significant challenges at the same time as its Government grant, which makes up around 75% of its income, is falling in real terms. The council needs to save £79.18m by 2029/30 to balance its budgets with planned savings and council tax increases reducing this amount to £45.911m during the same period. The saving required in 2026/27 is £10.356m.
Five key themes
East Lothian Council’s financial strategy sets out five key themes to address the significant funding gaps it faces. Respondents are asked to set these in order of the priority they should be given:
- asset rationalisation and energy efficiency – reducing costs by reviewing and rationalising buildings and exploring opportunities to raise income through renewable energy
- income generation – increasing the income the council receives, including through charges and commercial activity
- transformation, service redesign and digitalisation – changing how services operate to make them more efficient, including online
- early intervention and prevention – services that offer earlier support for people to prevent larger/ longer term issues that require expensive interventions
- service reduction – reducing services to deliver savings
Respondents are also invited to comment on services they believe should be protected or reduced, their views on delivery of services online to save money and put forward their own ideas for efficiencies.
Council tax
One quarter of the council’s total funding comes through council tax and the consultation asks for views on whether a rise would be supported and, if so, at what level. Each 1% increment equates to a weekly increase of 30p for an average property in East Lothian.
East Lothian Council Leader Councillor Norman Hampshire said: “We provide essential services that residents and business rely on daily, support the most vulnerable people in our community and help our children and young people learn, grow and thrive. All of this needs adequate resources yet our funding is reducing at the same time as demand for our services is growing.
“We have to deliver a budget that balances the income we receive with our spending plans – something that is becoming ever more challenging. We need to think differently about what local government services look like and there remain opportunities to make a real difference. Prioritising early work with vulnerable residents can be less costly but, crucially, it can lead to more positive experiences for that individual or family. Reducing the costs to run our buildings means we can invest in service delivery while embracing technology can provide more efficient ways of working.
“That’s why the budget consultation process is so important. We want to hear from our local communities about the services they use and value, and the areas they feel we should focus on.
“We all benefit from East Lothian’s success; it’s important that we’re all part of the process that will support it. I hope people will take part in this consultation and share their views to inform our budget decision-making.”
The consultation is available online until 12 November at www.eastlothian.gov.uk/council-budget. Paper copies are available on request by contacting the council’s Contact Centre: 01620 827827.