CUMBERLAND Council has made significant progress in managing the financial pressures it inherited on 1 April to control its costs.
The Q2 finance report published ahead of the Council's Executive meeting on 15 December shows a considerable reduction in the potential overspend of £8.5m, which is a favourable change of around £9m when compared to the quarter one forecasted position of £17.5m.
Over the past few months, Council officers have undertaken extensive reviews of services and their budgets to identify efficiencies and savings through a range of measures including reducing costs, vacancy management and service transformation. The council has also made great strides in recruiting permanent staff where previously agency staff were being used.
Whilst this is an improvement when compared to quarter one, work will continue at pace in quarter three and four to both ensure the current mitigations are delivered and that where possible further savings are identified to minimise the use of Council reserves.
Like many councils up and down the country who are facing similar financial challenges brought about by years of reducing levels of funding, Cumberland Council remains committed to controlling rising costs in services such as Adult and Children's care, whilst simultaneously completing the transition to the new unitary authority.
The ongoing pressures on the budget are mainly attributed to the increasing and continuing demands within Adult and Children's care services. The Council has a legal obligation to fund these services, which have seen an unprecedented rise in both overall demand and complexity of need since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Councillor Barbara Cannon, Cumberland Council's Executive Member for Financial Planning and Assets, said:
“Despite the huge financial challenges brought about by a sustained lack of investment in public services, we have demonstrated our commitment to bring about the changes needed to successfully manage the Council’s finances. Our primary goal is to ensure every taxpayer's pound is spent wisely and we stand firm in our promise to deliver quality public services for the residents of Cumberland.
“The combination of years of funding cuts from central government, rising costs, and surging service demand has created a formidable challenge for local authorities like ours. We are constantly pressed to do more with less.”
Councillor Mark Fryer, Leader of Cumberland Council, added:
“You only have to switch on the news to see the scale of the financial challenges faced by local councils right across the country. The Autumn statement by the Chancellor further demonstrated that the sector can expect ongoing financial challenges in the coming years. This is why I have signed a letter with other Council Leaders as part of the County Council Network to lobby the Chancellor for much needed additional resources.
“We need to see public service reform in this country and we urgently need a new deal for local government.
“After more than a decade of neglect and austerity, the Government has to now realise that the current public sector funding formula doesn’t work for areas like ours and needs to be overhauled. Pressures, particularly on councils with social care responsibilities, are pushing many well-run and well-managed councils to the brink of bankruptcy.
“However, we do have a comprehensive plan for Cumberland that I’m confident we can deliver to bring about further change, but recognise that the next few years will be very demanding indeed.”
More details can be found on the Cumberland Council website in the Executive committee papers for the meeting on 15 December 2023.
