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Central Bedfordshire
residents are urged to have their say on council spending plans for the next
financial year, as outlined in the budget proposals discussed in last week Tuesday’s (12
January) Executive meeting.
Protecting and maintaining vital frontline services is at heart of the
council’s proposals for this year. It is planning to invest almost £190million
in public services from April including £65million on adult social care
services, £44million on children’s services, £40million on community services
such as roads and transport, refuse collections and leisure and £10million on
public health.
However, the council is looking to deliver these services in the face of big
financial pressures. Costs of providing services are rising due to an ageing
population and more vulnerable families within our communities needing support
but at the same time the amount of money coming in from the government to help
fund services is reducing significantly.
To help bridge the gap between income and spend the council has identified
£15.3million of possible efficiency savings. However, following a further
reduction of £12million in funding for Central Bedfordshire next year alone
announced by the Government in late December, the council is also consulting
residents on a proposal to increase its share of council tax to help protect
services.
The Government has made clear that it expects more of the resources required to
provide vital services to be raised locally, through council tax. It is
assuming that the council will raise a special charge specifically to support
adult social care services of 2 per cent and a general council tax increase up
to 2 per cent to cover unavoidable cost pressures on council services, like
those that support an ageing population.
The proposed combined increase – the first in 5 years – of just under four
percent would put almost £1 a week on the bills of the average (band D)
household.
Saving measures
Savings measures
being proposed include: reviewing contracts and seeking better deals from
suppliers in areas such as waste collection, street cleaning, grass cutting,
CCTV and telephone services; cutting overheads and running costs in areas such
as management and administration; using technology to reduce spending and
improve online services; generating income by trading council services; and
changing the way some council services are run.
Councillors are also
considering investing up to £278million on capital projects over the next four
years from external and council funding. Major projects being proposed across
Central Bedfordshire include £75.3million on new school places, £41.8million on
highway schemes, £8.5million on the ongoing upgrade of all tidy tips including
a new site at Thorn Turn, near Houghton Regis, £9.5million on providing
disabled facilities grants, £4.6million on improving care home provision,
£7.6million on rolling out superfast broadband to more homes and £4million to
improve our market towns.
Other local
investments include, £13.4million on redeveloping Dunstable Leisure Centre and
expanding provision to accommodate other services including a new library,
£806,000 will be spent on regenerating Houghton Hall, £18million of external
funding will be spent on Woodside Link to connect Houghton Regis to the new
motorway junction 11a and £3million of external funding will be spent on
detrunking the A5 in Dunstable and associated redevelopment once the A5-M1 Link
opens in spring 2017.
To have your say on
the council’s spending plans, visit our dedicated Budget 2016 page,
or pick up a paper copy of the consultation questionnaire at council offices in
Dunstable and Chicksands, and in libraries, leisure centres, children’s centres
and customer service centres.
The closing date is Monday, 8 February with councillors then considering all
responses before the final budget is approved by full council at a meeting on
25 February.
Your feedback
We
want to know what you think of our new local updates. Send your feedback to updates@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.
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