Worcester council news
Worcester council news, newest first: decisions, budgets, council tax, bins and services, each linked to the council's own papers.
Top story
Worcester Parish Council: £60-£100 Band D, Say by 10 Dec
A new City of Worcester Council would add £60 to £100 a year to a Band D bill. The consultation is open to 10 December, with abolition now due in April 2029.
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Council
Worcester Leisure Centre Prices to Rise 5.3% in January
Adult swims at Perdiswell would rise 50p to £7.80 and a single three-centre membership to £55 a month from 1 January, under Freedom Leisure's 2027 price list.
Council
Accessible Worcester: 14 Barriers Raised, Report Out
Pavements, lifts, seating and disabled toilets are among 14 issues raised at the Accessible Worcester event, the council's report for 2 November shows.
Council
Worcester Fly-Tipping Hits 13-Year High: 512 Dumps, 7 Fines
Worcester logged 512 fly-tips in 2024/25, the most in 13 years of Defra records, but issued 7 fines and no prosecutions. Where it happens and how to report it.
Council
Worcestershire Budget Survey: £85m Gap, Closes 31 October
Worcestershire County Council faces an £85m gap next year and expects to borrow £84.5m to cover it. Its budget survey is open until 31 October.
Council
Worcester County Hall for Sale: 153 Homes, Bids by 12 Nov
The 16.6-acre County Hall site on Spetchley Road is on the market. Council planners have backed 153 homes in principle, and offers close at noon on 12 November.
Planning
Battenhall Farm Worcester: 180 homes, then a supermarket
The same 5.05 hectare field off Whittington Road was screened for up to 180 homes in June, then for a supermarket, a care home and 70 homes in August.
Council
Worcester's £1.3m Rough Sleeping Grant: £251,038 Is Confirmed
Worcester's £1.3m rough sleeping award is £251,038 this year. The other £1,075,299 is provisional, and the city holds every pound of capital in Worcestershire.
Council
Worcester Noise Complaints: City Centre Second in the County
Worcester's city centre logged 11 noise complaints in three months, 1.48 per 1,000 people and second highest in Worcestershire. Five city areas make the list.
Transport
Worcester Cycling Ban: Council Votes for a 10am-6pm Review
Councillors voted on Tuesday to ask the county to examine letting cycles through the 11 banned streets, after the 12-month trial condition was stripped out.
Council
Worcester City Council Abolition Paused: Parish Plan Delayed
Worcester's 2028 abolition is on hold under a government review. Consultation on a new City of Worcester Council now opens 29 October, not 1 October.
Planning
Worcester Planning Committee Decided 23 of 426 Cases
Officers made 95% of Worcester's planning decisions last year and the committee refused none. Councillors vote on Tuesday on rules that narrow it further.
Schools
New Worcester Secondary School Dropped: 45 Places Instead
The county scrapped the 600-place Newtown Road school and has 45 of the 90 places needed by 2029. City councillors voted on 15 September to demand one west of the Severn.
Council
Worcester Taxi Fares Frozen: 15 September Rise Scrapped
Councillors voted unanimously on 7 September to abandon the increase. The flag fare stays at £4.30 by day and £5.50 at night, and no new date has been set.
Council
Kays and Brickfields Crossings Closed: £100 Fine to Use
Two Worcester footpaths shut to everyone since 4 September. Using either crossing is now an offence with a £100 fine, and challenges close 29 September.
Transport
Worcester Cycling Plan: £88m of Schemes and No Funding
New Street, Charles Street and Edgar Street would lose cars under the council's 15-year plan. It prices 13 Worcester schemes at £88m, with no money attached.
Council
Worcester Taxi Fares Delayed: Drivers Voted 67-2 Against
The £5 flag fare did not start on 20 August. Two objections stopped it, and councillors are asked on Monday to bring it in from 15 September instead.
Council
Worcester Air Quality: The Butts Still Over the NO2 Limit
The Butts measured 41.8µg/m3 of nitrogen dioxide in 2025, the only Worcester site still over the legal limit at a home. The whole city is a management area.
Council
Worcester Taxi Fares Due to Rise Today: £5 Flag Fare
The new table takes effect from 20 August if no objections stood. Both tariffs rise: £4.30 to £5.00 by day, £5.50 to £6.40 at night and on Sundays.
Planning
Worcester planning: councillor call-in ends 31 October
From 31 October a Worcester councillor can no longer send a planning application to committee. The council's own report sets out what replaces it, and your 10 days to act.
Council
Worcester taxi fares: £5 flag fare proposed, up from £4.30
Worcester's daytime taxi flag fare would rise from £4.30 to £5.00, taking a two-mile trip to £7.60. What the council's own papers show, and your right to object.
Bins
Worcester Christmas Bin Collections: Friday Rounds to Move
Worcester's 2026 Christmas bin dates are not out yet. Christmas Day and New Year's Day are Fridays, so Friday rounds move. Last year's full dates here.