The local council is projected to be £9.6 million over budget. This shortfall largely comes from increased pressures on adult social care, children’s services and education. Unfortunately, this overspend leaves a 2% hole in the current budget. In light of this, council officials are scrambling to make up for anticipated losses in revenue.
With that demand comes the need for more services supporting those vulnerable residents. In the meantime, the council continues to face a unique funding and resource challenge. For instance, John Slope, the cabinet member for finance and a Reform UK councillor, pointed to the challenges the council is under. Yet, they face intense new pressures to keep their budgets balanced.
“We’re just really having a hard time making our books balance this year,” Slope said. Limited funding and resources leave them hard-pressed to keep up with the increasing demand for their services. This ongoing challenge makes us unprepared to serve our most vulnerable residents.
Even with the current overspend, the council has already provisioned £11.4 million in contingency for unexpected costs. Slope pointed out that it isn’t unusual to be forecasting an overspend by this time of the year. It is – largely due to these unrelenting financial pressures – an ever-present and grave danger. It’s never not worrisome and job one for us to close this 2% gap by year end,” he continued.
Enid McEnhill NCT is responsible for a large part of the £1.1bn overspend. As it stands now, it is on track to go £7.3 million over its budget. Moreover, it is forecast that education services will overspend by £1.1 million. The council had previously predicted a £53 million budget shortfall for the year. They did narrowly close that gap, staying ahead by baking in some closest through a combination of measures.
The Council’s revenue budget for 2025-26 is £431.8 million. The former Conservative government set this target in February. John Slope has already implied that planning is afoot for the 2024 fiscal year budget-setting process. He said then, “We’re starting the process of setting next year’s budget today. Our aim is to identify more savings and efficiencies that will protect the public services people rely on while delivering improved value for money.”
The local authority is committed to taking honest steps to address its fiscal crisis. Just as importantly, it makes sure that their longed-for services are really helping the most needy members of their community.
