Walsall Council tax up five per cent and lollipop patrols cut as local authority seeks to balance books

The tax for an average band D property will rise from £2,361 to £2,479 once charges for policing and fire services are taken into account across Walsall borough.

The cost-cutting measures were announced by council leader Councillor Garry Perry and his deputy Councillor Mark Statham on Thursday as they presented their draft budget for the 2025/26 financial year.

Councillor Perry said the Walsall Leather Museum was also set to move from its present location in Littleton Street to a new base in the centre of town, saving the council about £190,000 a year.

A review of how the town's market operates will also take place, and Councillor Perry said the authority would be open to the idea of handing both the borough's markets and its parking services to a private operator.

Councillor Statham, who is the council's portfolio holder for finance, said the council, like all metropolitan authorities in the West Midlands, had been forced to make difficult financial decisions.

He said 66p of every pound spent by Walsall Council went on social care.

"This is not sustainable. It's not just a Walsall problem, it is a national problem that the Government needs to address," he said.

Councillor Statham said the cost of children's care placements in Walsall had increased by 173 per cent over the past four years, while the cost of support for caring for vulnerable children in the borough had risen by 73 per cent.

Councillor Statham said recruiting crossing patrol wardens, who tended to be older people, was becoming increasingly difficult.

He said there were no plans to make existing wardens redundant, but the majority of them were unlikely to be replaced when they retired. Patrols would be retained for priority crossings, where they were necessary to ensure children's safety, Councillor Statham added.

He said there would be increased use of cameras to ensure parking rules around schools, which would also generate revenue for the council.

Councillor Statham stressed there were no plans to close the Walsall leather museum, but said the costs of maintaining the existing building were proving expensive.

He said moving it to a more prominent position in the town centre would not only reduce running costs, but also bring more people into the town centre.

He said a number of existing council-owned properties had been earmarked as suitable. He said any replacement for the existing museum would be larger than the existing site.

What happens next following Walsall Council's announcement about council tax rises cuts to lollipop patrols

The proposals will be presented to a meeting of the council's cabinet on Wednesday. If approved, they will go out to public consultation the following day.

Councillor Statham said the initial plans included a shortfall of £11 million, because he wanted residents to shape priorities.

Once the consultation has been completed, an updated budget will be presented to the council's cabinet on December 11.

Councillor Perry said the proposals were still very much at an outline stage, and could change depending on the outcome of the Government's Budget in the autumn.

The basic cost of the band D council tax will rise from £2,084 to £2,180, but the precept for police and fire services – which Walsall Council was not responsible for – would take the total figure to £2,479.

Councillor Statham said the final figure would be subject to change depending on the precept that would be set across the West Midlands.