Chester's Visitor Information Centre and Christmas Market could be run by Cheshire West as Marketing Cheshire is broken up. Cabinet also faced a £10.9m overspend.

The Chester Visitor Information Centre and the city’s Christmas Market could be run more closely by Cheshire West and Chester Council, under plans put to Cabinet on Wednesday 11 November.

The council’s tourism body, Marketing Cheshire, is being taken apart function by function as economic development across the county moves towards the new Cheshire and Warrington Combined Authority.

What the plans say for Chester

A transition report says Marketing Cheshire should not be treated as one service. It finds that local work in Chester, including the Visitor Information Centre and Christmas Market activity, may be better run locally, mainly by Cheshire West and Chester Council.

The Cabinet report lists the local functions now under review:

  • the Visitor Information Centre
  • the Town Crier
  • the Christmas Market
  • destination marketing, partnerships and campaigns

Regional work, such as place marketing and the Film Office, would be assessed separately.

Nothing is final yet. The report rules out, at this stage, any staff transfers, extra spending or winding up of either company. A later council report will set out the future arrangements for the Visitor Information Centre and other Chester services, and the chosen option will come back to Cabinet.

The money behind it

The same meeting looked at the council’s mid-year finance report, which forecasts an overspend of £10.9m this year, up from £9.4m at the first review.

  • The underlying pressure is £13.3m, cut by £2.4m of mitigating actions.
  • Children and Families is forecast to overspend by £6.9m, mainly on the cost of placements for children in care and home to school transport.
  • Recruitment is on hold apart from essential statutory posts and roles tied to income or savings.

If the overspend is not reduced, the general reserve would fall from £24.1m to £16.2m, well below the £24.9m to £27.9m range the council judges safe.

Council Tax help for low-income homes

The report also asks Cabinet to recommend to full council that the Council Tax Reduction Scheme stays the same for 2027-28, apart from one change. The scheme costs £26m in 2026-27, shared with Cheshire Police and Cheshire Fire.

The change protects around 60 households who receive the support group part of contributions based Employment and Support Allowance. They would have their help worked out on 100% of their bill rather than 75%, at a cost of about £25k a year.

What it means for you

  • The Visitor Information Centre and Christmas Market are not closing under these plans; their future running will be decided at a later Cabinet.
  • If you get Council Tax Reduction now, the scheme for 2027-28 is set to stay the same, subject to a full council vote.
  • With a hiring hold and an overspend, expect pressure on spending choices in the coming budget.