Herefordshire residents and businesses are invited to have a say on how council budgets are spent
“This year has seen unprecedented increases in costs and we recognise the impact this has had on Herefordshire residents, families and businesses. It has also had a significant impact on the Council’s finances with large increases in costs for fuel, energy, adult social care, looked after children and environmental services.
“With no increase in government funding, next year we will be facing a funding gap of more than £20million. This means we are going to face some extremely difficult decisions about which vital services to reduce further or stop entirely, and which ones to charge more for. We are only too aware this will have the greatest impact on the most vulnerable in our communities.”
Cllr David Hitchiner, Leader Herefordshire Council
A consultation has been launched to gather views from residents and businesses about how Herefordshire Council budgets should be prioritised in 2023/24.
The consultation presents some options that could contribute towards balancing the budget and their likely effects. These include reducing and changing services, increasing charging for services and increasing council tax.
A series of events are being held around the county where local people can find out more and give their thoughts on what they think the priorities should be, or you can share your views through an online survey at www.herefordshire.gov.uk/budget-consultation2023.
The consultation is open until Tuesday 3 January 2023.
From Herefordshire Council:
This year has seen unprecedented increases in costs for both residents and businesses across Herefordshire and we recognise the impact on you and your families. It has also had a significant impact on the council’s finances with large increases in costs for fuel, energy, adult social care, looked-after children and environmental services.
To meet these pressures, Herefordshire and local authorities across the country are now facing budget deficits on a scale that has not been seen before. With no assistance coming from central government, this means that additional cost pressures from inflation and growth in demand for services are unfunded and savings measures must be identified to address the resulting shortfall.
To ensure that the council remains in a financial position to progress our priorities of protecting and enhancing our environment, supporting the local economy and strengthening communities, we need to build financial resilience and make sure that we manage the council’s finances very carefully.
We continue to deliver services efficiently but rising costs and increased local demand for services mean we are currently facing a budget shortfall of £22 million in 2023/24.
This is such a serious shortfall that we can only address it by undertaking a complete review of the services the council can and cannot continue to provide.
This consultation presents some high-level options that could contribute towards balancing the budget for 2023/24 and their likely impacts which include reducing and changing services, increasing charging for services and increasing Council Tax.
