A presentation will be given on the evening with details of efficiency savings to be made for Bury Council’s budget until 2020.
Minutes:
The leader of the Council, Councillor Rishi Shori and Steve Kenyon, Interim Executive Director of Resources and Regulations, attended the meeting to present the budget proposals 2017 - 2020.
Councillor Shori explained that the vision was to lead, shape and maintain a prosperous Bury that is fit for the future within the current financial constraints; ensuring services are both affordable and sustainable. The focus was on developing resilient neighbourhoods in order to help communities and residents to support themselves where possible and improve their quality of life.
Councillor Shori stated that Bury was a popular place to live, work and visit and was the third most popular in Greater Manchester after the City Centre and the Trafford Centre.
Steve Kenyon explained the overview of the Council funding in 2016/2017 and what the key services provided for residents currently costs, which is:
· Adult Social Care £46.8 million
· Looked after children £10.6 million
· Waste disposal £12.5 million
· Highways £6.4 million
· Refuse collection £4 million
· Libraries £2.4 million
· Parks and open spaces £2.2 million
· Sports and Leisure £1.2 million
It was explained that since 2010 there has been a reduction in Government funding of £65.140 million and that Bury has suffered from low funding levels per head of population for many years compared to the rest of Greater Manchester and throughout England.
Councillor Shori explained that the demand for Social Care was higher with less funding but with people living longer and requiring care in later life. In addition to the reduced funding it was also necessary to factor in other cost changes, such as inflation, increases in energy prices and in levies from other bodies.
It was anticipated that Bury’s total cuts for the next 3 years up to 2020 would be almost £32 million and it was explained that Services are delivered from three Council Departments; Resource and Regulation, Children, Young People and Culture and Communities and Wellbeing, with the areas for the proposed cuts from each department as follows:
· Resource and Regulation – proposed cuts of £7.3 million in areas including, reconfiguring back office Services, collaborative working with other public bodies, continued rationalisation of Council property, income generation, Highways asset management, Treasury management/Investment activity.
· Children, Young People and Culture – proposed cuts of £7.7 million in areas such as Development of Early Years provision and the Fostering and Looked After Children Service, Service reviews, Management restructure and changes to School Funding Regimes.
· Communities and Wellbeing – proposed cuts of £17 million in areas such as reviewing Operational and Leisure and Wellbeing Services, focusing on bringing together Health and Social Care Services and Joint Commissioning and to review the Organisational and Transport arrangements.
Councillor Shori explained that the Council do not want to be making these cuts and must still provide statutory Services but it’s also important to tackle inequalities and support life chances within Bury. The Public Consultation closes on 31 January 2017 with the analysis of all responses from 1 – 14 February 2017 and the proposals go to Council on 22 February to be agreed. The proposals can be viewed on the Council Website and all feedback is welcomed before 31 January 2017. Comments and suggestions could be submitted in the following ways:
· Submitting feedback online at www.bury.gov.uk/budget201720
· Emailing at budget201720@bury.gov.uk
· Writing to budget201720, Bury Council, Knowsley Street, Bury, BL9 0SW
· Telephoning 0161 253 5696
· Completing a Township Forum Exit Survey which was available at the meetings.
Those present were given the opportunity to ask questions and make comments and the following points were raised:
· The Chair, Jimmy Hill, expressed his concerns in relation to fly tipping and the cost to the offender, if caught, being minimal but the cost to the Council in taking these people to Court far exceeded the fine. Councillor Shori agreed that there was an issue with fly tipping throughout the Borough and in some un-adopted streets the charge could go to the local residents. A member of the public stated that he had signed a petition of over 300 in relation to the issue of fly tipping and would it not be possible to issue portable cameras in order to catch the perpetrators.
· Harry Reed asked what influence the new Mayor of Manchester, when elected, will have over Bury and Councillor Shori explained that although the new Mayor will have certain powers, this will not affect the savings and cuts that Bury must make. Councillor Walmsley stated that Bury East was a deprived area and some residents were struggling and vulnerable and the Council is trying to tackle the inequalities in these areas that the residents face.
· Tan Ahmed thanked Councillor Shori for the informative presentation but asked what the vision was after 2020. The Leader of the Council explained that Bury has the strongest economy in Manchester and people want to come to live, shop and be educated here. The aim is to maintain a prosperous Bury, fit for the future, with more employment and less poverty.
It was agreed:
That Councillor Shori and Steve Kenyon be thanked for their presentation.