The Council will soon start the first phase of its annual public consultation into next year’s Budget (2026/27), after Cabinet agreed to continue an established two-phase approach. Phase one will focus on investment priorities, and will enable online and offline participation that includes face-to-face engagement.
A report to Cabinet on Wednesday, October 22, informed Members of the proposed approach to engaging with residents and stakeholders. Each year, the two phases of consultation play an important role in the Council’s Budget-setting process, as the views captured from the public provide senior officers and Cabinet with relevant information to inform their final decision making.
On Wednesday, Cabinet approved the proposed methods of consulting with residents, and the timescale for this to take place. Phase one will be held in autumn 2025, to collect views on investment priorities, council tax levels, and efficiency savings. This will help inform a draft Budget Strategy for 2026/27, which will then be the focus of the second phase of consultation in early 2026.
The Council can now confirm that the phase one consultation for the 2026/27 Budget will get underway in the week commencing Monday, November 3 – and will last for six weeks in total, until mid-December.
The RCT Let’s Talk engagement website will be the main online portal for the consultation. The site will give key information about the budget’s context and background, plus engagement tools to provide feedback. This includes an interactive Budget simulator that asks residents to choose services that are most important to them on a sliding scale, based on the available finances. This user-friendly tool has been developed since its introduction last year.
Throughout the consultation, the Council’s social media channels will promote the process and encourage public engagement, while emails will be sent to key stakeholders (including the Citizens’ Panel, councillors and staff).
Offline, a telephone consultation option is available through the Council’s contact centre (01443 425014), with individual call-backs offered. Papers surveys and information can be arranged to be sent over the phone, while a consultation Freepost address is available for all postal submissions. Please use Freepost (RUGK-EZZL-ELBH), Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council, Third Floor Office, 2 Llys Cadwyn, Pontypridd, CF37 4TH.
A number of face-to-face engagement events will also be offered out and about in local communities. These will be used to outline the Budget approach, answer questions, and collect people’s views. The events will allow local residents to speak directly with officers about the Council’s services. The dates and locations will be shared by the Council once finalised.
We will engage with a number of ‘Neighbourhood Networks’ – plus groups like the Older Persons Advisory Group, the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the Joint Consultative Committee, the School Budget Forum and the Community Liaison Committee. An interactive approach to engaging young people will also be explored, working with the Youth Engagement team.
Councillor Maureen Webber, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Council Business, said: “Each year, the Council undertakes a comprehensive approach to consulting the public on the Budget-setting process. Cabinet has again agreed to adopt a two-phase approach for 2026/27 that enables people’s views to be informed with the most up-to-date and relevant information, at different stages of the process.
“While we have a tried-and-tested formula, we’re also continually looking at how it can be developed further, so we can reach even more residents – both online and offline. More than 1,100 people took part last year, and since then the Council has adopted a new Involvement Strategy that further strengthens our commitment to enabling everyone in the community to have their say on the planning and delivery of services, and the decisions that we make.
“Receiving valuable input from residents is even more important given the continuing financial challenges facing Local Government. September’s Medium Term Financial Plan warned of a very challenging period ahead due to factors like ongoing cost of living pressures – and this is on the back of a sustained period of real-term funding reductions over a number of years.
“In addition, the Welsh Government Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language has indicated that a single-year Budget will be presented for 2026/27, increasing current year spending by inflation only (2%). With pay and non-pay costs rising well above this level, every Council in Wales will face very tough decisions in the months ahead. Financial modelling by officers suggests we could face a budget gap of £28.2 million next year, before taking into account council tax levels. This position will become clearer following Welsh Government’s provisional settlement, expected during November 2025.
“I’d encourage interested residents to take part in our phase one consultation from the week starting November 3. They can take part online, at local events, via phone and by post – while there’s also the return of our interactive Budget simulator, allowing residents to set their priorities with the available finances.”
Posted on 29/10/2025