Find out about councillor allowances

Guildford Borough councillors are not paid a salary for the time they spend working on council business. Instead, they are entitled to allowances by law.

A basic allowance is paid to all councillors. Special responsibility allowances are paid to those councillors who have significant additional responsibilities, over and above the generally accepted duties of a councillor.

An independent remuneration panel reviews the scheme and makes recommendations to the council. The panel completed a review of the scheme of allowances in November 2023.

Independent Remuneration Panel's Report - November 2023 (PDF, 715 KB)(opens new window)

Allowances were frozen in 2023-24. The new scheme of allowances, approved by the Council in December 2024, and came into effect from 1 April 2025.

Councillors Allowances Scheme (April 2025) (PDF, 168 KB)

Rates of allowances are adjusted annually in line with the percentage increase in staff salaries.

Councillor allowance summary reports

It is our policy to keep records of councillors' allowances for six years. Summaries of allowances paid to councillors for the financial years 2020-21 to 2025-26 are included below.

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2020-21 (PDF, 56 KB)

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2021-22 (PDF, 113 KB)

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2022-23 (PDF, 62 KB)

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2023-24 (PDF, 146 KB)

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2024-25 (PDF, 218 KB)

Summary of Councillor Allowance Payments for 2025-26 (PDF, 366 KB)