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Council approves £1 billion budget to ‘improve Manchester’ after 14 years of Government funding cuts

Emily Sergeant - 3rd March 2026

Manchester City Council has officially approved a £1 billion budget for 2026/27.

After 14 years of funding cuts and ‘unfunded pressures’ from 2010 to 2024, which saw Manchester among the hardest hit places in the country, Manchester City Council says that its financial position has improved this year due to ‘fairer funding’ from the current Government which overall reflects the city’s needs.  

For the first time this year, the Council’s revenue budget exceeds £1 billion (£1.045 billion, to be exact.) 

This leaves the Council able to invest even more in supporting residents’ priorities, and ultimately begin to build back some of things which were previously affected by austerity.  

A bigger budget to meet Manchester’s needs. pic.twitter.com/67NNtDN7Kk

— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) February 27, 2026

As well as continuing to support those who are considered to be most in-need in the city, this current 2026/27 budget also makes a series of investments in measures – which the Council says will make ‘visible improvements’ across the city. 

Some of these measures include £5.13m towards ‘ significantly enhancing’ street cleaning services across the city, more than £1.7m to boost the maintenance of public spaces, especially parks and green spaces, and almost £1m to further crack down on flytipping and littering.

This year, there’ll also be one-off investments of £1.1m improve road, pavement, and path surfaces, and £500,000 to increase pavement and footpath gritting in local centres.

Elsewhere, capital funding will continue to be used to build the Council, social, and ‘genuinely affordable’ homes that the city needs, as well as invest in local high streets and district centres across the city.

“Manchester is an incredible city which we are all proud to call home,” commented Cllr Bev Craig, who is the leader of Manchester City Council.

“We’re seeing record levels of investment in our neighbourhoods and communities, more council and social homes built than for decades and stronger economic growth than anywhere in the UK.  

Read more:

• Andy Burnham pledges to build 10,000 new council houses in Greater Manchester by 2028
• Greater Manchester reveals £11.7m plan to tackle empty homes across the region
• ‘Life-changing’ scheme helps house hundreds of Greater Manchester’s homeless people

“But we believe that Manchester can be even better, and that’s what we’re determined that this budget will help achieve – a city where everyone can have a good home, a good job and a good life in an well cared for, invested-in neighbourhood.  

“That’s exactly where the extra funding available to us in this budget is being focused.”

Featured Image – Manchester City Council