Shropshire Council faces a £11.8 million budget shortfall and proposes cuts to waste collection, museum opening hours, and staffing to address the issue.
Shropshire Council is facing a significant budget shortfall and has unveiled plans to bridge the £11.8 million gap by next year. The council has launched a public consultation on proposed savings measures, aiming to achieve £8.5 million in new cuts. These proposals include shifting to a three-weekly general waste collection schedule, reducing the operating hours of the museum and castle, and streamlining council operations by eliminating approximately one in five jobs.
The council anticipates a 3.1% increase in spending power from government funding in 2025/26, coupled with a 4.99% council tax increase. However, this increase pales in comparison to the national average funding boost of 6%, particularly for urban authorities experiencing higher allocations.Shropshire Council attributes the budgetary strain to rising demands for services, especially social care, coupled with escalating costs for supplies and operations. The withdrawal of a £9 million rural services delivery grant and substantial cuts to social care funding, effectively amounting to a £16 million loss, further exacerbate the situation. While the council notes some potential benefits from new homes bonus, market sustainability and improvement funds, and various homelessness funding streams, the looming deficit remains a pressing concern. The council projects ending the 2024/25 fiscal year £37.3 million over budget, necessitating the utilization of nearly all its £38.3 million reserves fund to balance the books, leaving a mere £1 million in reserves. Gwilym Butler, Shropshire Council's cabinet member for finance and corporate resources, emphasizes the need for further cost-cutting measures in 2025/26, stating that the council is committed to delivering £50 million in savings, surpassing the £41 million achieved in 2023/24
BUDGET SHORTFALL WASTE COLLECTION MUSEUM HOURS COUNCIL TAX SAVINGS
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