February is, usually, a marked improvement on January. Days get longer, pancakes are scoffed, and love is in the air.

In the world of local government, February also sees a flurry of activity compared to the first month of the year. Why?

The answer is simple: Budgets. Each year, every council must pass a balanced financial plan for their upcoming municipal years in the Spring.

In Cheshire West, this activity has ramped up ahead of two crucial meetings: Cabinet on February 10, and full council on February 25 — so what exactly is the budget, and what's changed in this year's edition?

What is the budget?

The budget lays out the council's tax and spending plans over a number of years.

The 2021/22 Cheshire West budget actually runs until May 2025 — although elections in 2023 could mean spending schemes look vastly different to what they are now.

Despite running for multiple years, councils will draft a new budget every year in order to revise spending plans, alter tax levels, and adjust savings proposals as required.

By law, councils must pass a balanced budget for the first year of its operation — CWAC's is, but then includes a £53.4 million black hole between April 2022 and March 2025. This is referred to as the 'jaws of doom' graph by the Labour group.

What are the major changes this year?

The big one is council tax. It's set to rise by 4.99 per cent in 2021/22.

Leaders say this is due to the extra pressures brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

This increase will generate £203 million for the council, but still does not plug that aforementioned £53.4 million deficit between 2022 and 2025 — even with the assumption that tax will rise by 1.99 per cent year-on-year during that period.

In the 2021/22 budget, savings are proposed across the board to a variety of council services, including £1 million of efficiencies in the delivery of care, £914,000 of cuts in a corporate services review, and the removal of the £2 million children's social care contingency fund, to name but a few.

That being said, these savings are more or less balanced out with investment — with around £21.7 million in each category — so some services will see a boost.

It's also worth noting that these changes only affect the revenue budget — which can be thought of as the council's day-to-day fund.

For bigger projects, like Barons Quay in Northwich or Northgate in Chester, councils will use a capital budget.

How close is it to being passed?

Only two hurdles remain for the budget this year, but they are the two most-high profile barriers.

First, on February 10, it will need approval from cabinet — the leaders of the council — but there is an opportunity for members from other parties, and lesser-profile Labour councillors, to raise concerns over the plans.

However, only cabinet members will vote on it so expect it to pass on to the next stage without any opposition.

The biggest test is full council on February 25.

Full council meetings include all 70 CWAC councillors, and are often heated, bitter, and lengthy.

They also present an opportunity for opposition members to table amendments to proposals, like the budget.

This can radically alter a motion, such as Labour's amendment to a Conservative-led push to cancel active travel lanes in Chester in December, which took much of the sting out of the bid.

What makes things even more interesting is the maths: CWAC currently has two councillor vacancies, so 68 members will log on to the meeting later this month.

However, Labour only has 34 members — meaning it has to rely on some support from another party to pass the budget to achieve a majority.

Whatever happens on February 25 will prove pivotal to how the borough recovers from the effects of Covid-19.