It is a requirement for Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Authority to set a level of revenue budget and council tax before the start of the forthcoming financial year. At its budget setting meeting on 8 February 2023, the Authority approved a total net budget requirement of £65.99m to run Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service for the year 2023-24:
| 2022-23 | 2023-24 | |
| Employee costs | £51.55m | £53.85m |
| Premises | £3.78m | £4.39m |
| Transport | £1.40m | £1.66m |
| Supplies and services | £5.47m | £5.90m |
| Agency and contracted out services | £2.48m | £2.93m |
| Capital financing/leasing | £4.01m | £4.31m |
| Spending on services | £68.69m | £73.04m |
| Income/Reserves | -£7.64m | -£7.05m |
| Amount to be financed | £61.05m | £65.99m |
This is funded as shown below:
| 2022-23 | 2023-24 | |
| Fire precepts | £44.84m | £48.35m |
| Revenue Support Grant | £4.00m | £4.40m |
| Business Rates/Top-up Grant | £10.19m | £10.85m |
| Other grants | £2.02m | £2.39m |
| Total financing | £61.05m | £65.99m |
How our budget requirement has changed:
| Budget Requirement in 2022-23 | £61.05m |
| One off items in 2022-23 budget | -£0.15m |
| Pay and price inflation | £4.95m |
| Investment in fire safety resources | £0.58m |
| Savings from other restructuring | -£1.28m |
| Business rates revaluation | £0.17m |
| Capital financing costs | £0.36m |
| Other net changes | £0.31m |
| Budget Requirement in 2023-24 | £65.99m |
Fire precept bands
Residents pay for their Fire & Rescue Service as part of their council tax bill, and the fire precept element of the bill for a Band D property in 2023-24 is as follows:
| Band A | Band B | Band C | Band D | Band E | Band F | Band G | Band H |
| £56.29 | £65.67 | £75.05 | £84.43 | £103.19 | £121.95 | £140.72 | £168.86 |
Spending on major capital projects:
The Authority’s capital programme for 2023-24 totals £7.1m. This includes planned spending of £1.7m on maintaining our fire stations and other buildings, as well as developing new training facilities in Devizes and Weymouth; £4.5m on replacement vehicles and associated equipment; and £0.9m on new or replacement ICT equipment and information systems.
For more information, please email [email protected]