Draft Budget 2023-24 Revenue Proposals

Overview

We need your views on the Council’s budget

The Council’s draft budget report for 2023/24 includes key saving and investment proposals for next year.

It is very important that our residents and businesses have a say on this draft budget to help to ensure the Council delivers the Council Plan priorities being consulted on with residents and sets a balanced budget for 2023/24.

Background

The Council has a budget gap before any budget reductions of £13.3m for 2023/24 and a further pressure of at least £26m over the subsequent three years. Much of this pressure is driven by projected increases in demand for services such as housing and social care, changing economic conditions including higher inflation and interest rates, and a much greater reliance on income generated locally rather than government grant funding.

Given the difficult financial backdrop it is essential the Council delivers value for money for residents, and these proposed budget savings aim to save money without reducing the quality of the services the Council provides to our residents.

Below are a few key proposed savings (all proposed savings can be seen in the budget proposals):

• £680,000 additional income from letting of properties which have previously not had income budgets
• £400,000 relating to supporting Adult Social Care service users people to live more independently and reduce longer-term dependency on care
• £148,000 relating to a Homecare transformation for Adult Social Care users, recommissioning core contracts and piloting digital platforms
• £200,000 by improving processes around accessing Housing Benefit for Care Leavers
• £150,000 in Children’s Services through more equitable arrangements with health partners
• £1,607,000 relating to staff savings across the council, including £832,000 from non-front-line services
• £1.9m relating to proposed parking policy changes
• £1.5m reduction in employer contributions following the actuarial valuation of the pension fund

Below are a few key proposed areas of growth (all growth can be seen in the budget proposals):

• £99,000 invested into additional staff for increased street cleaning
• £78,000 relating to increased graffiti removal.

This consultation focuses on the budget for 2023/24 that will be agreed by full Council in March 2023 and the proposals for which we are seeking your feedback on, breakdown into two main types:

• Budget Growth – proposed increased budget in 2023/24 to fund increased service provision.
• Budget Reductions – proposed cost reductions and additional income for 2023/24. These savings are required to achieve a balanced budget for 2023/24. Any savings not taken forward will need to be replaced with alternatives on a £ for £ basis as the Council is required to set a balanced budget

A summary of each of the budget areas above is listed by lead member responsible below:

• Adult Social Care and Public Health
• Communities
• Economy, Employment and Innovation
• Planning, Place and Environment
• Finance and Customer Delivery
• Children and Family Services
• Community Safety, Culture and Leisure
• Housing and Social Investment
• The Leader
• Cross Cutting/ Council Wide

The full list of proposals in one document.

A separate consultation on the Council’s capital proposals will follow in December. This will focus on plans to make investment in infrastructure such as housing, schools or IT/software costs.

Why your views matter

We’d really appreciate it if you can spend a few minutes to complete our consultation survey. Your views at this stage will help to inform our budget decision-making.

If you need help to complete this survey, or need it in an alternative format please email Liam.McCusker@rbkc.gov.uk