Blackpool Council announces £8.6m budget cuts

Blackpool Council is set to cut £8.6m from its budget in the coming financial year with council tax bills expected to go up by five per cent.

The savings – which are mainly in adult social care and Children’s Services – are proposed despite the council receiving an extra £17.7m in central government funding.

But town hall bosses say key services including libraries, leisure centres, street cleansing and bin collections are protected and no jobs will be lost.

Council leader Coun Lynn Williams said the extra government funding was a lifeline without which, potential cuts would have been much worse.

She said: “For the first time, in a long time, we have received a local government settlement that is fair and begins to tackle some of the pressures we are facing.

“Our spending power will increase by £17.7m (9 per cent). This is the lifeline we desperately need to face rising demand in adult and children’s social care, inflation rises and the potential impact of National Insurance increases.”

She added: “I dread to think what non-statutory services we would have had to cut if we had not received this settlement. That said, we are still in a position that we need save to £8.6m in the upcoming financial year.”

The main areas of savings include £3.7m from adult services where a review of home care has found care packages can be reduced for clients able to use alternative community services designed to encourage independent living.

Nearly £2m will be saved from the Children’s Services budget including due to increased contributions from the NHS for the care of children with complex needs.

Meanwhile a Fairer Funding review by the government into the way local councils are funded is expected to lead to Blackpool getting more money in future years.

Coun Williams said: “As always, reducing and cutting services is the very last option that we consider. The proposals ensure that our most vulnerable residents and the services that they rely on are safeguarded."

She added despite the latest round of cuts the council remained “financially viable” with earmarked reserves also set to rise to £21m.

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