Preston Voters Decide £4.2M Council Tax Shift in 2026 Referendum

The Preston City Council referendum scheduled for 5 November 2026 will let residents vote on reallocating a portion of current council tax revenue to adult social care and highway repairs rather than introducing a new levy. The measure affects all 147,000 council tax paying households in the city by determining how £4.2 million already collected is spent from April 2027 onward.

National changes to local government funding formulas have reduced central grants to Preston by 8 percent over the past two years, according to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government settlement published in December 2025. This shortfall has prompted the council to seek direct voter approval for internal budget adjustments instead of across-the-board service cuts.

How the measure reaches daily resident costs

Approval would direct the £4.2 million to expand home care visits for 1,200 additional older residents and resurface 18 kilometres of residential streets in areas such as Ribbleton and Ashton. Rejection would leave those funds in the general budget, where they currently support libraries and parks, with no immediate change to individual bills. Council tax statements mailed in March 2027 would show the new spending line only if the measure passes.

Local authority data from the 2025-26 budget papers list adult social care at £48 million annually, covering 6,800 clients. Shifting the additional amount would cover an estimated 14 percent increase in domiciliary care hours without raising the Band D rate beyond the 2.99 percent increase already set for 2026-27.

Next steps after the vote

Ballot papers will reach households by 20 October, with results declared the following day. If passed, the council’s finance team must incorporate the allocations into the 2027-28 budget by February 2027. If rejected, existing service levels remain in place until the next full budget round in 2028.