Exeter City Council met on 2 September 2025, to discuss the city's budget, a proposal for local government reorganisation, and a motion to improve river quality. Councillors agreed to participate in a consultation on fair funding, and voted to request that South West Water complete a transparency template for infrastructure in the Exe catchment.

Here's a breakdown of the key topics discussed:

• Local Government Reorganisation in Devon
• General Fund Revenue Budget 2025/26
• Housing Revenue Account Budget Monitoring Report
• Rivers 2 and Transparency Template
• Other Matters

Local Government Reorganisation in Devon

The council debated and agreed to a proposal for local government reorganisation (LGR) in Devon. Councillor Philip Bialyk, Leader of the Council, stated that everything is about to change and that Exeter had a responsibility to lead the process.

The proposal outlines a vision of three unitary councils:

• An urban-focused council based on the city of Exeter and 49 surrounding parishes.
• An urban-focused council based on the city of Plymouth and 13 adjacent parishes.
• A rural and coastal unitary council serving the rest of Devon.

Bindu Arjoon, Chief Executive, clarified that all 11 councils in Devon would be abolished by 2028, and that the council's responsibility was to propose a new single-tier system. She added that the proposed new unitary authority for Exeter would serve around 256,000 people, rising to 294,000 by 2040.

Opposition group leaders voiced their support for the recommendations, with Councillor Michael Mitchell noting that the City of Exeter would form a major component of a new unitary authority. Councillor Lucy Haigh, Equity Independent Group Co-Leader, considered the current proposal to be the best possible option, while Councillor Diana Moore, Progressive Group Co-Leader, stressed the importance of community engagement and the role of parish councils.

General Fund Revenue Budget 2025/26

The council considered the overview of the General Fund Revenue Budget for the first quarter of 2025/26. The report Overview of General Fund Revenue Budget 2025-26 - Quarter 1 FINAL projected a positive variance of £295,550 against a revised budget of £20,670,760.

Key points from the report:

• The General Fund Working Balance is projected to stand at £4.138 million at year end.
• Environmental Health & Licensing is showing a forecast positive variance of £189,000, predominantly due to savings within the service establishment and difficulties in recruiting to vacant posts.
• Domestic Refuse Collection is forecast to have a positive variance of £310,000 due to vacancies within the service establishment.
• Corporate Support is forecast to have an adverse variance of £332,000 due to the vacancy rate in the Civic Centre and therefore lower rental income from tenants.
• The Guildhall Shopping Centre continues to perform well with strong occupier demand with additional net income of £330,000 compared with budget, but this will be transferred to an earmarked reserve and cannot be used for general expenditure.
• A net forecast adverse variance of £133,000 is anticipated for Parking Services due to increased costs and lower income.
• A positive variance of £133,000 is forecast for Elections & Electoral Registration due to the 2025/26 district elections being funded by Devon County Council.
• A forecast adverse variance of £444,000 is anticipated for Leisure & Sport, due to the removal of budgets for Northbrook Pool and Exeter Arena as part of 2025/26 budget savings.

The council approved the General Fund forecast financial position for the 2025 financial year, as well as supplementary budgets and budget transfers detailed in the report.

Housing Revenue Account Budget Monitoring Report

The council reviewed the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Budget Monitoring Report for Quarter 1 of 2025/26. The report 2025-26 HRA Budget Monitoring Q1 FINAL highlighted a projected transfer of £423,070 from the working balance, a £157,000 increase from the revised budget.

Key points:

• The HRA working balances were £4,905,388 as at 31 March 2025, higher than the £3.525 million contingency that had been resolved to be retained.
• It was requested that the £157,000 internal decorations revenue budget be used to support the communal flooring capital budget, in order to replace carpets in communal areas.
• Devon County Council provided £190,700 in grant funding to Exeter City Council, which will be used towards the purchase of two two-bedroom properties and one four-bedroom property to resettle Afghan families.

The council approved the HRA forecast financial position for 2025/26, the revision of the HRA Capital Programme, the transfer of £157,000 from the decorations revenue budget to the communal flooring capital budget, and the spending of £190,700 in grant funding from Devon County Council.

Rivers 2 and Transparency Template

Councillor Tess Read proposed a motion, seconded by Councillor James Banyard, calling for increased transparency from South West Water (SWW) regarding infrastructure upgrades to improve river quality. The motion Rivers 2 motion 20.8.25 requested that SWW complete the Friends of the River Exe's (FORE) Transparency Template for each piece of their infrastructure in the Exe and its catchment.

The motion referenced the government's commitment to improving river quality and Exeter's declaration of a climate emergency, as well as the Exe Estuary's status as a Site of Special Scientific Interest¹ and Special Protection Area². The council voted unanimously to approve the motion.

Other Matters

• The council agreed to participate fully in the consultation process on the Fair Funding Review 2.0, advocating for the funding gap caused by Class N exemptions³ to be filled.
• Councillor Michael Mitchell asked Councillor Bialyk if he would commit to not cancelling the local elections scheduled for May 2026, to which Councillor Bialyk confirmed that he had no intention of cancelling them.
• Councillor Lynn Wetenhall asked Councillor Ruth Williams, Portfolio Holder for City Management, to confirm that the roll-out of food waste collections would include flats in the city centre, to which Councillor Williams confirmed that they would.
• Councillor Moore asked Councillor Duncan Wood, Portfolio Holder for Leisure Services and Healthy Living, about when the Exeter Spitfires baseball team would be able to move onto their permanent home of Bromham's Farm, to which Councillor Wood responded that it was anticipated that terms would be in place prior to the start of the April 2026 formal baseball season.
• Councillor Banyard asked Councillor Susannah Patrick, Portfolio Holder for City Development, if the council had responded to the government's consultation on proposed changes to the way planning committees operate, to which Councillor Patrick responded that they had not.