Somerset's new unitary authority plans to spend more than £258m on new and major infrastructure projects in its first year of operation.

Somerset Council will officially replace the existing county council and four district councils on April 1, bringing all its functions and services under one roof.

Ahead of its first budget being set on February 22, officers have published details of major projects which will be carried out in the first 12 months of the new authority's existence.

These projects – collectively known as the capital programme – include investments in the county's road infrastructure, protecting cliffs from subsidence, extending the life of a popular reservoir and upgrading one of the county's main theatres.

Here's what you need to know:

What is a capital budget – and how is it paid for?

Every local authority in England sets two different budgets – its capital budget (which covers the creation of new buildings, roads and other facilities) and its revenue budget (which covers day-to-day spending on services, including rent and salaries).

A capital budget or programme is usually funded by a mixture of borrowing, central government grants, contributions from housing developers and the sale of existing assets (e.g. land or buildings which are no longer used).

Any borrowing that is undertaken has to be repaid (with interest) through the revenue budget – so the more a council borrows, the more of its day-to-day spending is eaten into by paying off debt.

However, it has been historically cheaper for councils to borrow at a lower interest rate than the private sector – and the loans are frequently for long periods of time, allowing the repayments to remain manageable.

What schemes didn't make the cut?

Rising demand for children's service and adult social care, coupled with the financial positions of the five existing councils, has left the new unitary authority needing to find £38.2m in revenue savings in its first year.

To reduce the burden on its revenue budget, the authority has pushed four capital schemes back to the following financial year (i.e. 2024/25) – namely:

• Upgrades to Yeovil Crematorium (£3,367,000)
• The regeneration of Wincanton town centre (£1,537,000)
• New supported living homes for children with disabilities (£1,500,000)
• Improvements to Bridgwater Library (£1,425,000)

Together, these four schemes provide savings of £7,829,000.

A fifth scheme – a planned bypass on the A39 between Ashcott and Street via Walton – has been scrapped in its entirety after the Department for Transport (DfT) refused to provide funding.

What existing schemes are going ahead?

In Somerset, the new unitary authority is inheriting all the planned capital schemes of the five councils it replaces.

While this has resulted in some schemes being postponed (e.g. the Wincanton regeneration, spearheaded by South Somerset District Council), many others are still going ahead.

Some of these schemes which are included in this year's capital programme are already under way – such as:

• The delivery of the Yeovil Refresh (£13,472,000 remaining)
• Delivering new cycle connections through the Firepool site in Taunton (£7,116,000)
• The construction of the Taunton digital innovation centre (£1,914,000)

Many of these existing schemes have attracted most or all of their funding from outside of the council – making it much more likely, even with high inflation, that they can be implemented rapidly.

These include:

• The Bridgwater and Glastonbury town deals (£22.6m and £23.6m respectively)
• Bridgwater's successful levelling up fund bid (£19.7m)
• Funding for the Staplegrove urban extension (£14.2m)

Other schemes have a mixture of funding sources but are still going ahead based on their merits – including:

• Upgrading the Octagon Theatre in Yeovil (£16,191,000 in the first year – £27,146,000 overall)
• Upgrading the Dunball roundabout in Bridgwater (£5,242,000)
• Enhancing the A38 Chelston Link Road (a.k.a. the 'concrete carriageway') in Wellington (£5,250,000)
• Building a new solar farm at Saltlands in Bridgwater (£3,107,000)
• Protecting the B3191 at Blue Anchor (£2,298,000)
• Improvements to Wellington Library (£1,198,000 in the first year – £1,229,000 overall)
• Stabilising North Hill in Minehead (£1,010,000)
• Decarbonisation and enhancement of Wellington Sports Centre (£761,000)
• Repairs and upgrades to the Brewhouse Theatre in Taunton (£185,000)

What new schemes are in the pipeline?

In addition to these inherited capital schemes, the new Somerset Council has put forward a list of its own projects.

Some of these are quite predictable and are necessary for the council to fulfil its legal obligations – such as routine highway maintenance (£26,569,000), protecting the rights of way network (£1,421,000) and providing new classrooms to two oversubscribed schools (£394,000).

Others, however, are more unusual but will nonetheless prove beneficial – such as:

• Refurbishing the Frome enterprise centre (£375,000 in the first year – £825,000 overall)
• Improving the Chard Reservoir dam to extend its lifespan (£78,000 in the first year – £99,000 overall)

Councillor Ros Wyke, portfolio holder for development and assets, told the council's executive committee in Taunton on Monday morning (February 13) that the programme showed the council was willing to invest in Somerset when it was most needed.

She said: "In the middle of all budgetary demands on councils, to protect a large number of projects across the county is an achievement. I think it shows we are looking to the future."

The budget proposals will be debated in full when the full council meets in Bridgwater on February 22.