A report setting out all consultation responses was considered by the Enabling and Customer Services Committee, providing councillors with access to the full range of comments and submissions made during the consultation period.
The Budget 2026/27 consultation, which closed on 23 November 2025, received record engagement, with 6348 residents, employees and organisations completing the council’s budget consultation survey and 7331 responses received in total across all engagement channels.
Following an initial summary presented to Full Council in December, the report now brings together the full detailed feedback, including responses gathered through:
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The online budget consultation survey.
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The council’s interactive Budget Challenge simulator.
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Community Conversations held in every council ward.
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Written submissions received by email.
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Petitions submitted during the consultation period.
The feedback will inform councillors as they continue to develop budget proposals for 2026/27 and future years, ahead of final decisions being taken at Full Council later this month.
Councillor John Campbell, Chair of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Enabling and Customer Services Committee, said:
“This report ensures that elected members have access to the full detail of the feedback received through the budget consultation.
“Given the level of engagement we saw, it’s important that this information is clearly presented and properly considered as we move towards setting the council’s budget.”
Councillor Ben Dashper, Vice-Chair, said: “The consultation attracted a significant response, reflecting the strength of feeling about local services and future priorities.
“This update supports openness and accountability by making the full feedback available to members as final budget proposals are developed.”
As part of the next stage of the process, the council will publish a ‘We Asked, You Said, We Did’ and ‘We Didn’t Because’ summary, setting out how consultation feedback has influenced final budget decisions and explaining where alternative options were not possible.
The full consultation feedback is available on the council’s Budget Consultation 26/27 webpage: Budget Consultation 26/27 | Dumfries and Galloway Council