Council Leader, Councillor Mike Ross said: “This year’s budget is about making the people’s priorities of a cleaner, greener and safer city a reality.
“Our proposed budget includes plans for a number of new flagship schemes, including:
- £1,000,000 Spring Clean programme. This isn’t just about a quick spruce up – this is about the in-depth, thorough clean-up of the fabric of local neighbourhoods that residents have been calling for. Fixing broken streets and signage, mending potholes and removing dirt and mess that’s built up over time.
- £500,000 Crime Prevention Fund, first introduced towards the end of 2022, has been well received by residents and communities across Hull. The budget doubles the fund to £500,000.
- £100,000 for new Pocket Parks to create new community facilities in the heart of local neighbourhoods. The budget will help to give communities somewhere they can enjoy with their family – near to them, and where they want it.
- A new £1,500,000 High Streets Support Fund to help local neighbourhood centres be the best they can be. This fund will support a range of measures to improve the look and feel of our community high streets, to give confidence to shoppers and local traders and make them a great place for start-up businesses to invest and grow.
“The proposed budget also includes continuing the commitment to supporting the people of Hull through the cost of living crisis – providing ongoing support to local food banks and supporting a network of warm spaces so people don’t have to choose between heating and eating.”
The proposals will be presented to the council’s Finance and Value for Money Overview and Scrutiny on 10 February and Full Council on 23 February – where a final decision will be made on the budget.
Specific consultation will take place with representatives from the business community, voluntary sector, youth representatives and the city’s Health and Wellbeing Board.
Councillor Ross continued: “I said when I came into this role that I want this to be a listening Council – and I meant it. This budget continues my mission of putting the views and priorities of the people who live and work here at the heart of everything the Council does.
“This budget understands the need to support Hull’s residents when there is a cost of living crisis, building on the support already in place through warm spaces, additional support for food banks and directly to families during the holidays.
“This is a budget that will help clean up Hull’s streets. It will see local neighbourhoods across the city get the sort of genuine clean-up they have long needed, to keep those communities cleaner and greener well into the future. This is a budget that will see more investment in crime prevention, working with communities to tackle problems in our area – in the way they want to see it done.
“This is a budget that will see our vital community high streets improved – so it’s a budget for the whole of the city, not just certain parts.
“I want Hull to be a greener, cleaner and safer city, and want the council to support the people who need the help the most. This is the vision at the heart of this budget.”
Deputy Leader of Hull City Council and Portfolio Holder for Finance Councillor Jackie Dad said: “Everyone knows that the cost of everything is rising and the Government is giving less and less funding to Hull City Council. In these circumstances, we need to make every penny count and make sure local residents get the vital services they deserve. That’s why this budget protects council services and invests in the people’s priorities.”
