Greens deliver more money for adult social care, young people and social housing in first ever Green Bristol Budget

Following a meeting of Bristol’s city councillors on Tuesday evening, Bristol City Council has set a balanced budget put forward by The Green Party.

The budget, which is the largest ever budget set by Greens in administration, covers £1.7 billion of spending across all areas and prioritises more money for adult social care, young people and social housing.

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Tony Dyer, Leader of Bristol City Council said, “This budget provides a solid foundation from which we can progress as a city.

“It contains the necessary work required to transform the council into an organisation that can deliver the high-quality outcomes that residents expect, and invests millions in key areas to improve all aspects of Bristol.”

“We now have a budget we can believe in and put structures in place to help us deliver the £1.3bn of revenue and £400m of capital investment over the next 12 months as we start the journey of delivering a fairer, greener city.”

Alongside a revenue budget of £1.3 billion, the budget includes £400 million of capital investment in areas such as parks and green spaces, new council housing, repairing ageing highways infrastructure, bringing new transport options online and introducing new homes for children in care.

This includes £27.8 million of vital investments in children, young people and families which will:

• Allow 34 new practitioner staff at Family Hubs to provide increased support and reduce practitioner case loads. These will include specialist practitioners to work with adolescents.
• Allow the council to hire an additional Social Worker to work within the Post 16 housing team to better support young people needing to be accommodated by the local authority.

Tens of millions will also be invested in improving Council housing and tackle homelessness, which will:

• Provide vital investment in council housing stock, including £21.6 million in investment in high rise blocks, £19 million in day to day repairs, and millions more to improve specific areas such as electrical testing, fire alarm, and tackling damp and mould.
• Continue to provide new social housing with 728 new units planned – 136 will be delivered in 2025/26 and 263 in 2026/27

The budget was amended by the Liberal Democrat Group and the Labour Group, who both had two successful amendments passed. Labour also put forward 10 other amendments that were voted down.

Cllr Emma Edwards, Leader of the Green Group said; “This budget is only the first step for our administration, and I am proud of all those who have input into what is a landmark budget for Bristol.

“However, I am disappointed that Labour continue to refuse to take part in the committee system and instead have made a mockery of this budget process with amendments of mismatched ideas, which don’t add up, or haven’t been thought through or scrutinised.

“Rather than take part in cross-party decision making, they have chosen a role of obstructive, attention-grabbing opposition and I am disappointed that they are more interested in grabbing headlines than working together for the people of Bristol.

“But while we have set this budget today, the work does not stop here. By working together, we will achieve more for the city, we will work better and garner more trust and confidence from those who elected us, regardless of political party. By doing this, we will focus on the job at hand, put the petty politicking, the petitions and headline chasing aside, and instead focus on what is best for the people of Bristol.”

Read more of our news from Bristol and beyond at Bristol News https://directlocalbristol.co.uk/bristol-news/