Budget - Policy & Resources committee update: January 2025
An update on the council’s budget for 2024-25 and 2025-26 was presented to members of the council’s Policy and Resources Committee, including the authority’s critical financial position.
This included a recommendation that Section 151 Officer makes an application to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) for £20m of Exceptional Financial Support to cover the deficit position for 2024/25 and a further potential £20m for 2025/26 to fund transformation costs of agreed savings.
Members also agreed to maintain the spending freeze and recruitment controls, to limit expenditure to only absolute essential items into 2025/26 and minimise any other spending, where possible.
In addition the meeting was asked to authorise a global offer to staff to request Early Voluntary Retirement (EVR) or Voluntary Severance (VS).
Wirral Council leader, Cllr Paul Stuart, said:
The council is facing massive demand for key services such as adult and children’s social care, while funding has not kept pace with the increased need or inflation in recent years. This means the council does not and will not have the money to continue delivering services as it has in the past.
The Council is doing everything it can to streamline and modernise operations, managing costs through major transformations. However, this alone is not enough to bridge the gap. It is increasingly clear that more ways to reduce costs must be found, including making cuts to the organisation.
Like councils across the country, Wirral Council is facing exceptional levels of demand, placing intolerable pressures on its ability to stay within budget, and it is clear that very difficult decisions will have to be made to set a balanced budget for the coming year.
The Council is required to set a balanced budget each year and to have a longer term plan (Medium Term Financial Plan) which is intended to help anticipate as far as possible future budget pressures and any potential savings options.
The coming weeks will see council committees being asked to consider feedback and outcomes from the Budget Oversight Panels (BOPs) which have been held in recent months to develop budget options across all council areas.
Work is already underway on a number of measures to help tackle the budget gap including major transformation of the Council’s digital capability to modernise and streamline business processes, and streamlining back-office functions.
Council-owned land and buildings will be reduced to deliver value for money and generate capital receipts while work is underway to manage demand for statutory services particularly Adult & Children’s social care and the Council’s leisure and cultural services offer will be modernised.
The next steps will see budget options presented to council committees through January and then to the Policy and Resources Committee, which will make recommendations to be considered at a meeting of the full council on February 26.
