Staffordshire County Council has agreed a £600 million budget for the coming year.
Investments approved for 2023/24 includes £50 million for road repairs and maintenance.
In addition, the green light has been given to build a major road junction to Pets at Home’s national distribution centre in Stafford, which will create 800 job; and £3.1 million for the Chatterley West employment site near Kidsgrove, which has the potential to create up to 1,700 jobs.
However, more than two-thirds of the entire budget (£400 million) will be spent on providing social care for the elderly and to support vulnerable children and young people.
A total of £40 million will be used for public health projects, such as diabetes prevention and drug and alcohol addiction treatment.
Ian Parry, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet member for Finance, said: “We are very conscious that this winter has been tough for many residents and businesses, which is why we have tried to help in several different ways.
“We have been affected by the same problems – inflation, plus heating and energy increases have added more than £25 million to our costs – but we have worked hard to present a balanced budget.”
As reported previously in Daily Focus, the County Council is increasing council tax by 4.99 per cent for 2023/24 – with two per cent of this ringfenced for social care.
That means the annual increase for a Band D property will be the equivalent of £1.34 a week.
