Council Budget 2011/12
Published:Thursday 17 February 2011Following the recent public consultation on the 2011/12 budget, Rutland County Council's Cabinet members have agreed a number of changes to recommend to Full Council at their meeting on 21 February.
As a result of feedback from local residents, the following changes to the original consultation proposals have been proposed and agreed by Members of Cabinet:
• The 47 bus service (Belton – Uppingham – Peterborough) will continue. As a result of the feedback received during public consultation, the council has successfully renegotiated the contract to enable the required savings to be made whilst still continuing the bus service.
• The council is exploring working with Parish Council’s and/or community volunteers to assist staff in community libraries. This could help reduce the likelihood of reducing opening hours in the future.
The Councils Communication Department may not be aware Oakham Town Council rightly so told you to get on and run your on Libraries
• The Highways department will prioritise existing maintenance of roads and pavements ahead of starting new projects.
Leader of Rutland County Council, Roger Begy, said: “This is without doubt our most difficult budget year but also one of the best public consultations that we have held. We had an excellent response from the local community, with many people already understanding the difficult position we are in. As a result of their feedback, we’ve made a number of changes to the original proposals and Councillors will make the final decision next week”.
Roger Begy added: “As we indicated to local residents many months ago, Council Tax will not increase this year. The council is making some very difficult decisions at the moment and has already saved £4 million through reducing staff numbers, renegotiating of council contracts, a proposed alteration to staff terms and conditions, and changes to some of the services we provide”.
Roger Begy went on to say: “With many government funded projects coming to an end, the opportunity to make local decisions is greater than ever. This reduction in funding does mean though that some council services will operate at a reduced capacity”.
Cabinet met (Tuesday 15 February 2011) and gave their approval to the budget for the next financial year. The final decision will be taken by all 26 Councillors at the meeting of Full Council on Monday 21 February 2011.
Members of Cabinet also approved the Medium Term Financial Plan. This is a document that outlines council finances for the next four years and makes sure that any budgetary pressures are taken into account at an early stage and planned for in advance.
Public consultation on budget proposals took place throughout January.
With the council facing government funding cuts of 14.3% (2011/12) and 9.8% (2012/13), public interest was high with over 300 local residents taking part and submitting their views.
A full summary of the consultation is included in the papers for the Full Council Meeting on Monday 17 February.
