Autumn Budget 2026: what it means for hospitality

£13.21

the new National Living Wage from 1 April 2027, up from £12.71

Autumn Budget, 28 October 2026

Smaller sites get a break on rates. Every site gets a bigger wage bill. Here is what to do about it before April.

The Autumn Budget 2026 landed on 28 October. For hospitality, that means a business rates break for smaller venues and a National Living Wage of £13.21 from April 2027. Your accountant will cover the tax. This piece covers the other half: the practical changes that save hours on the rota before the new wage rates bite.

What the Autumn Budget 2026 changes for hospitality

Area	What changed	When
Business rates	Small business rates relief for hospitality, retail and leisure now goes up to £18,000 rateable value, from £12,000. Tapered relief now runs up to £21,000, from £15,000. Around 70,000 more businesses will pay no rates at all. For other venues, rises are capped at inflation in 2027/28 and 2028/29.	From April 2027
Pubs and live music	Relief for pubs, social clubs and most live music venues in England rises from 15% to 35%.	From April 2027
National Living Wage	Up 3.9%, from £12.71 to £13.21 an hour.	1 April 2027
18 to 20 rate	Up from £10.85 to £11.27 an hour.	1 April 2027
Employer National Insurance	No change. Still 15%, still from £5,000 a year.	No change
VAT	No change to rates or thresholds.	No change

Worth checking with your accountant or council whether you now fall under the new relief threshold. Plenty of venues miss reliefs they are owed because nobody puts the claim in.

National Living Wage, per hour

Up £1.77 an hour in three years, around 15%

£11.44

April 2024

£12.21

+77p

April 2025

£12.71

+50p

April 2026

£13.21

+50p

April 2027

Rates for workers aged 21 and over. The April 2027 rate was confirmed in the Budget on 28 October 2026.

What the National Living Wage rise costs you

Move the sliders to your own numbers.

Try it on your own rota

What the April rise costs you, and what trimming hours saves

Staff hours a week paid at the living wage:200

Hours you could trim a week:9

Extra wages a year from April

£5,200

at 50p more an hour

Saved a year by trimming

£6,182

at £13.21 an hour

Wages only. Employer National Insurance and pension contributions add to both figures.

How restaurants can save labour hours

Rota to your till

Pull eight weeks of hourly sales from your EPOS. Most rotas run past the peak they were built for.

Close the session that doesn’t pay

If a lunch takes less than its wages, fill it or shut it. An empty, staffed room is the expensive option.

Cut the menu by a fifth

Lose the dishes heavy on prep and light on sales. Less prep, less waste, faster tickets.

Cross-use ingredients

One prep job should feed three dishes, not one.

Par levels and a fixed prep list

Prep stops when the par is hit, not when the kitchen runs out of time.

Deposits on bookings

No-shows are wages spent on covers that never arrive.

How cafés and bakeries can save hours

Bake to sell-through

Note what’s left at 3pm for a month and set the bake list from that.

Cake orders online

An order form with payment upfront. Fewer calls at the counter, no unpaid orders.

Counter or QR ordering

At quieter times it frees a pair of hands without hurting service.

Too Good To Go

End-of-day stock recovers some cost and brings in new faces.

Labour savings for every venue

Cross-train

A barista who can run the pass means fewer people covering more at quiet times.

Standing supplier orders

Par levels and a standing order replace the daily phone round.

Automate the admin

Booking reminders and review reply templates give owners hours back.

Batch your social

One planned session a month beats posting at 11pm every night.

Fill it or shut it

Every quiet session is a choice between closing it and filling it. The tweaks above handle the first half. The second half is marketing: locals’ nights, a proper email list, a reason to come in on a Tuesday.

The short version

Rates

£18k

Rateable value now covered by small business rates relief, up from £12k. Check if you qualify.

Wages

£13.21

An hour from 1 April 2027, up from £12.71.

National Insurance

No change

Still 15% on pay over £5,000 a year.

Your move

Fill it or shut it

Rota to your sales, trim the menu, cross-train your team.

Want a hand filling the quiet ones? See what we do

Autumn Budget 2026: hospitality questions answered

What is the National Living Wage from April 2027?

£13.21 an hour for workers aged 21 and over, up from £12.71. The rate for 18 to 20 year olds rises from £10.85 to £11.27. Both take effect on 1 April 2027.

Did the Autumn Budget 2026 change business rates for hospitality?

Yes. Small business rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure now covers venues with a rateable value up to £18,000, up from £12,000. The government says around 70,000 businesses will stop paying rates altogether, tapered relief now runs up to £21,000. For other hospitality venues, increases are capped at inflation in 2027/28 and 2028/29, a freeze in real terms.

Did employer National Insurance change in the 2026 Budget?

No. Employers still pay 15% on earnings above £5,000 a year per employee. Hospitality bodies asked for relief and the Budget did not give it.

Did VAT change for restaurants and cafés?

No. There was no change to VAT rates or the registration threshold for hospitality.

How can a restaurant cut labour costs without hurting service?

Rota to your hourly sales data rather than habit, trim shifts that run past the peak, cross-train staff so fewer people cover quiet periods, and either fill or close sessions that cost more in wages than they take.

GoodFolks is a marketing agency for independent restaurants, pubs, cafés and bakeries. If midweek is your weak spot, start with how to fill a quiet Tuesday. Planning the year ahead? Read January starts in October.

Sources