Surrey Heath Borough Council’s End of Year Performance and Finance reports will be presented to the Executive on 21 July.
The 2025/26 reports demonstrate continued strong service delivery and substantial financial savings achieved in the face of ongoing budget challenges and significant Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) developments.
Council Leader Cllr Shaun Macdonald said: “These reports highlight the key achievements and successes of the council despite significant financial challenges, the delivery of an ambitious savings programme, along with the effect of fundamental changes to the structure of local government in Surrey.”
78% of Annual Plan objectives were completed, with another 9% in progress.
LGR has had a considerable impact on the annual plan. The work involved in preparing for the shift from the current two-tier system to unitary authorities affected resourcing and capacity within the council, as officers supported the LGR implementation programme. This led to a review of the annual plan mid-year and increased the number of delayed, reduced or removed delivery items. LGR directly accounts for 10% of the additional delayed or deferred work in the plan. A further 5% of projects were delayed or put on hold due to circumstances out of the council’s control.
Key projects delivered include the resurfaced and upgraded access road and car park at Lightwater Country Park, coinciding with the opening of new padel courts at the venue.
A refurbished playground and new sports equipment have been installed in Bagshot and Mytchett, the first Changing Places facility opened in Camberley town centre, and further progress was made towards adoption of the Local Plan.
Several community venues and groups have been supported via the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Fund, made up of ringfenced payments made by developers to build and improve local infrastructure. Successful awards include West End Pavilion, Old Dean Bowling Club, Frimley Green & Mytchett Scouts and The Hope Hub.
Cultural and leisure services also performed well, with more than 923,000 visits to Places Leisure Camberley in the past year. Camberley Theatre achieved 74% average attendance, while Surrey Heath Museum reached more than 8,800 people – both increases on the previous year.
The council supported vulnerable residents with more than 28,500 Meals at Home delivered and over 1,500 social prescribing referrals, more than double the original target.
We maintained our position in the top 10 local authorities nationally for recycling and expanded the range of materials that can be recycled via kerbside collections, while food waste collections have been rolled out to more than 1,000 flatted properties.
Regeneration work in Camberley continued with major asbestos removal and demolition works completed to part of the London Road Block. Improvements to Pembroke Broadway, Arnold Walk and Cambridge Walk were also carried out, along with successful roof works to The Square shopping centre.
Service performance continued to excel, with 100% of major planning applications processed within the designated timeframe, and 98% of environmental health complaints addressed within five days. New benefits claims took an average of 24 days to process, significantly lower than the 30-day target, while changes to benefits were processed within four days on average, beating the 10-day target.
Financially, the council achieved substantial savings, ending the year with a £4 million underspend, significantly more than the £2.6 million forecast.
Investment income generated £0.9 million against a £0.4 million target, with successful loan restructuring incurring a further benefit of £1.6 million during the year. Transformation savings of £2.2 million surpassed the budgeted target of £1.36 million.
Reserves closed at £20.93 million - a considerable improvement compared to the original budget.
Cllr Macdonald added: “These reports demonstrate how we are delivering on our commitment to work hard for residents and stabilise the council’s finances, while being transparent about the challenges we face. Our prudent budget setting has been key in helping to achieve these goals.
“I would like to thank council staff who continue to carry out their primary task of serving the residents and businesses of Surrey Heath every day, while supporting a smooth transition into the new West Surrey Council.”