The Community Council Funding Review Working Group of Scottish Borders Council met on Friday 2 October 2026 to discuss the funding model for community councils. The meeting's agenda included a review of the community grants base rate model, insurance arrangements, and data protection fees, alongside draft recommendations for future financial support.

Community Grants Base Rate Model

A significant portion of the meeting was scheduled to focus on the Community Grants Base Rate Model. This involved considering various options for how community councils receive their funding. The report pack outlined proposals for a base rate combined with a pence-per-head rate, with updated population bands to better reflect community sizes. The modelling indicated that some community councils might receive less funding under certain proposed models compared to their current grants. Discussions were expected to cover the potential impact of inflation on grant amounts and the need for community councils to potentially compensate secretaries and treasurers. The report pack also highlighted that a 40% uplift in community council funding would have an estimated annual impact of £24,000 on the Scottish Borders Council (SBC) budget. A key consideration was ensuring that no community council would receive a smaller annual grant under any new scheme.

Community Council Insurance

The working group was scheduled to review the current arrangements for community council insurance. Scottish Borders Council currently covers the cost of insurance for all community councils, provided by Zurich Municipal through a shared service agreement with the City of Edinburgh Council. The report pack detailed that since the 2023/24 review, SBC's commitment had increased to include public liability (events) and all risks cover for owned assets, previously funded by community councils from their grants. The budget allocation for community council insurance for 2026/27 was £12,300. A complex issue raised was the potential need for libel and slander cover, following concerns from Berwickshire community councils about legal action threats. Discussions were ongoing with the insurance underwriter and legal teams to identify the most appropriate level of cover.

Data Protection Fee

The meeting was also set to address the data protection fee for community councils. Scottish Borders Council covers the cost and administration of these renewals, with the current annual fee being £52 per community council, an increase from £40 in 2025/26. The report indicated that there was no announced date for further increases before the next review of financial support. The paper noted that in some local authority areas, this fee is included within the annual support grant, with community councils expected to manage their own registration. However, it was felt that this would add an unnecessary administrative burden, and no changes to this arrangement were proposed unless the working group saw a benefit in doing so.

Draft Recommendations

The working group was scheduled to consider draft recommendations compiled by the Community Coordinator. These recommendations covered several key areas:

• Increase Support Grant: The favoured model proposed a base grant supplemented by a per capita amount, with restructured population bands.
• Annual Inflationary Uplift: A recommendation to include an annual uplift in line with inflation to ensure funding keeps pace with costs.
• Hall Hire Budget Increase: A proposal to increase the hall hire budget by 10% to reflect rising costs, with an estimated financial implication of £712.
• Advance Notification of Hall Hire Costs: A recommendation for community councils to advise SBC annually of their estimated hall hire costs to aid budget forecasting.
• Increased Insurance Cover: A suggestion to extend insurance cover to include arrangements put in place since the 2023/24 review.
• Continued Data Protection Cost Coverage: A recommendation for SBC to continue covering the costs and administration associated with data protection renewals.
• Funding for Community Council Network: A proposal to make £1,250 per annum available to a new Borders-wide community council network once established, with the grant level to be reviewed as the network develops.
• Permission for Third-Party Grants: A recommendation to permit community councils to make grants and donations to third parties and individuals, subject to evaluation forms being submitted.
• Triennial Review: A recommendation to continue formally reviewing financial support to community councils every three years.

A potential recommendation to add personal liability cover to the block policy was also listed for discussion.