Budget Survey 2026

Overview

What Nottinghamshire County Council does

Nottinghamshire County Council aims to deliver good services that improve outcomes for Nottinghamshire's people and communities.

The council provides a wide range of services, including:

Care and support

Essential care and support for vulnerable older people
Help, protection and care for children and young people
Assistance for people with learning disabilities
Support for people leaving hospital
Family-based placements for children needing specialist care

Education

Planning and commissioning school transport
School admissions
Funding for new schools

Communities and public services

Libraries and cultural services
Trading Standards
Health initiatives and support for healthy lifestyle changes
Wedding officiating and registration services

Environment and the economy

Maintenance of roads and pavements
Investment in roads to boost the economy
Flood prevention
Country parks and visitor attractions
Inward investment and broadband services

How we spend our annual revenue budget

The council spends 81% of its budget on schools, services for children and young people, and adult social care.

Only 1% of the budget is spent on running the council.

**Where the council spends it budget**
Service area	Amount spent (in millions)	Share of budget
Schools	£479.9m	30.5%
Services for Children and Families	£273.7m	17.4%
Services for Adult Social Care	£520.6m	33%
Community and Place services	£295.1m	18.7%
Running the council	£6.5m	0.4%
Total gross expenditure	£1575.8m

The council is committed to balancing its budget while responding to rising costs and increasing demand for services.

Since 2015/16, the council has delivered £152 million of savings by changing the way some services are delivered.

The council is also working to reduce pressures on its budget by focusing on approaches that provide the right help at the right time. This helps to prevent the need for more costly statutory services.

How the council is funded

The council's total budget is £1,575.8 million.

More than a third of the council's budget is funded through Council Tax. A further 31% comes from government grants that are dedicated to delivering schools and education services.

**Where the council's funding comes from**
Funding source	Amount recieved (in millions)	Share of funding
Council Tax	£541.5m	34.4%
Dedicated schools grant and other schools grants	£479.9m	30.5%
Business rates	£170.1m	10.8%
General government grant	£164.1m	10.4%
Charges for our services	£142m	9%
Public Health grant	£55.8m	3.5%
Other government grants	£18.4m	1.2%
Use of reserves	£4m	0.3%
Total funding	£1575.8m

Percentages are shown for illustrative purposes and rounded to the nearest whole number.

Our Council Plan

Our Council Plan 2025 to 2029 sets out the council's ambitions and priorities for Nottinghamshire. It focuses on delivering effective and efficient public services for residents across the county.

The plan is structured around three key outcomes:

stronger families
thriving communities
a connected county

A fourth area of focus is being a council that leads and listens. This is why we are asking for your views on the council's budget.

You can read the Council Plan and visit related webpages using the additional information links below.

Why your views matter

As we set our budget for 2027/28, we want to understand which services are most important to you.

Your feedback will help us decide what to prioritise and identify where there may be opportunities to make savings.

Tell us what matters most to you.

Have your say

The easiest way to complete this survey is online.

If you need this survey in an alternative format, email policy@nottscc.gov.uk
If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you can use the Relay UK service by dialling 18001 0115 9774050 from a textphone or by using the Relay UK app.
You can also use the SignVideo app to communicate with us in British Sign Language (BSL) through an interpreter. Contact us using SignVideo.

Ready to take part?

Start the budget survey