Councillor allowances set to be frozen or cut

An independent review of allowances paid to Shropshire Councillors has recommended that the basic allowance remains unchanged this year, meaning the vast majority of councillors will not receive any increase in their allowance during the year 2026/27.

The Independent Remuneration Panel’s report will be considered at the full Council meeting on Thursday 24 September [2026], with councillors asked to approve their recommendations. The recommendations follow a review undertaken during summer 2026.

The Panel has recommended that the basic allowance paid to councillors remains at £14,839, noting that it is already in the top quartile compared with similar or larger unitary councils.

It has also recommended the removal of the automatic annual increase mechanism that linked councillors’ allowances to local government staff pay awards. In future, any increase would need to be considered and approved by full Council rather than happening automatically.

The Panel also proposes reductions in a number of Special Responsibility Allowances (SRAs) paid to councillors holding specific positions.

Special Responsibility Allowances that are proposed to reduce, include:

• Deputy Portfolio Holder allowances, which would reduce from a multiplier of 0.25 to 0.15.
• Scrutiny Committee Chair allowances, which would reduce to a multiplier of 0.75.
• Area Planning Committee Chair allowances, which would reduce to a multiplier of 0.5.
• Area Planning Committee Vice Chair allowances, which would reduce to a multiplier of 0.15

The allowance for the Chair of the Licensing Sub-Committee and Vice Chair of the Strategic Licensing Committee would be removed entirely.

While the panel recommends a small number of changes to reflect additional responsibilities in certain roles including the Chair of the Audit Committee, and the introduction of allowances for Scrutiny Committee Vice Chairs and an Audit Committee co-opted member, overall most councillors would receive no increase and some councillors would receive less than they do currently.

The Independent Remuneration Panel recommendations were informed by comparisons with other councils, representations from councillors across political groups and consideration of the wider public sector pay environment and inflationary pressures.