Proposed changes to County Council's budget plans unveiled
Potential changes to the Council’s 2010/11 budget plans, costing £3m, have been unveiled today.
The proposed changes are subject to final review once the full results of the budget consultation, which closes on Friday 22 January, are known.
The proposals, which have not yet been approved, include:
- increasing the meals at home price from the current £2.35 charge to £3 in April 2010 and £3.95 in April 2011
- retaining the current funding for the Community Transport Scheme to allow a full review of the service to be carried out over the next 12 months to understand if any changes to the service can be made
- reducing the Welfare Rights Service budget by £150,000 rather than £250,000, so that potential staff reductions will be reduced to protect the service during the recession
- phasing in changes to the funding for the Dukeries Community College and Sutton Centre College over the next two years
- continuing the £560,000 payment to district and borough councils to encourage them to deliver dry recyclable materials to the Council’s materials recovery facility
- increasing the County’s gritting budget by £50,000
- selling the Council's care homes in 2011/12 - a year later than the original proposals
- increasing the potential savings in administration in ASCH by £100,000 due to the high number of current vacancies, although the number of staff affected by the proposals will remain the same.
The proposals mean the number of redundancies in some service areas may be reduced.
Employees directly affected by the proposals should talk to their line manager for more information about the implications for their post.
Funding to pay for the proposals has been identified from a number of areas including:
- some underspends in the Council’s budget
- lower than expected cuts in government grants worth £300,000
- more money coming in from Council Tax collections due to the increase in the number of new homes that have been built in the county
- budgeting for no increase in staff pay next financial year, in line with the expected outcome of the national pay negotiations.
