Stoke-on-Trent City Council is looking to cut its annual spending by £7.5 million in budget proposals it says will show businesses that it is serious about stability.
The local authority published its draft budget for 2025/26 yesterday with council tax set to increase by 4.99 per cent, the maximum rate allowed without a referendum.
But the Labour-run authority has said its ‘stabilising budget’ proposals minimise front-line cuts and maximise efficiency savings.
Of the £7.5 million of total budget reductions, £1.1 million of savings affect public-facing services and require public consultation, while the remaining £6.4 million is in back-office efficiencies and savings.
Proposals include new social care fees, upping prices at leisure centres and dimming streetlights.
The budget would see one redundancy at this stage (compared to 16.1 net full-time equivalent jobs last year), and 20 vacant posts deleted (63 were deleted last year). A small number of other roles may be at risk of redundancy; however it is expected the majority would be offered new roles under restructuring.
The budget includes £16.8 million of exceptional financial support – an emergency loan from the government to help councils struggling with central funding cuts. This figure includes £11 million to support children’s social care placements.
Consultation will take place on the proposals before they go back before councillors next month.
Speaking to Daily Focus, Council Leader Jane Ashworth, pictured above, said: “It’s a good time [for businesses] to be considering growth and investment in the city. The council is committed to doing all we can to help that growth.
“The budget shows that we are serious about stability and that we will make tough decisions in order to get us to ride the ship as it were.”
Proposals and the amount of expected savings include:
- Price increases at local authority gyms and leisure facilities. Gym membership could rise by £1 per month, swimming sessions by £1 per time and pitch hire going up ‘less than a pound per player for an 11-a-side game’. Saving – £297,000.
- Reducing demand for formal assessments and support plans in adult social care through a ‘front door’ strengths-based approach. Saving – £230,000.
- Accelerating the provision of and use of extra care facilities with onsite providers as an alternative to residential care. Saving – £220,000.
- Dimming of streetlights where it is practical and safe to do so. Saving – £100,000.
- Introducing an annual administration charge for adult social care self-funders who make use of the council’s brokerage service. Saving – £75,000.
- Transferring the operations of New Horizons Leisure Centre, in Chell, over to Ormiston Academy on a long-term lease. Current staff will either continue to be based there or relocate to another centre. Saving – £69,000.
- Review and optimise indoor market provision, such as cleanliness and security, to stimulate economic growth. Saving – £35,000.
- Developing a pet garden of remembrance at an area at Carmountside Cemetery and the sale of pet memorialisation items. Saving – £3,000.
Cllr Ashworth has warned the financial outlook remains “extremely challenging” despite significant work to improve the council’s position.
Councillor Alastair Watson, cabinet member for financial sustainability and corporate resources, said the budget is a step along the path of ‘bringing financial stability and clear strategic direction to the council’.
He said: “A decade of austerity means we have nearly £100 million less to invest in services than we had 15 years ago. Even with the cuts we have already made – and the further cuts we are proposing today – we remain reliant on Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) to balance our budget, which is a legal requirement.
“What is clear is that we are in a much better place than we were this time last year – not just financially, but in terms of the service improvements that the residents of this city need and deserve.”
Sustained falls in the number of children in care – after years of increases – are forecast to generate significant savings in coming years.
And in adult social care, the council recently hit a target of zero unmet hours – meaning everyone assessed as needing care was getting it.
The proposed council tax rise includes a social care precept of two per cent and equates to an additional £1.04 a week for the average council taxpayer in the city.
The budget consultation will run until 10 February 2025.
Residents can have their say here. They can also write to Budget 2025, c/o Executive Assistant to the Corporate Director of Resources (S151 Officer), Civic Centre, Glebe Street, Stoke, ST4 1HH.
The proposals will be discussed at scrutiny meetings before going to the council’s ruling cabinet on 18 February and full council on 27 February.
