Further cuts to be made at Telford & Wrekin Council

The cuts are on top of savings of £13m already identified for Telford & Wrekin Council 2017 to 2018.

The authority has cut its budget by about £10 million in recent years, and says further cuts are still to come.

The figures were revealed in a financial management report, set to go before its cabinet at its next meeting on July 17.

But the report says that the council is expected to be within budget in this financial year, despite seeing big cost pressures on children's services.

The report says the position stands after using a contingency of £2.5m that had been earmarked in this year's budget to help with pressures in early help and support.

It says: "It is a positive start to the year given that £13.8m savings were required to balance the 2017/18 budget and the aim is that senior managers will sustain this position and make further improvements where possible by year end.

"Children’s safeguarding and early help and support continue to be key areas of focus and both have cost improvement plans in place to reduce costs and deliver savings. These plans are monitored on a regular basis both by senior managers and cabinet members.

"Children’s safeguarding is a key pressure with an overspend of £1.0m being reported which is a combination of the cost of placements for looked after children, the cost of social workers and barrister costs. A four year model is in place which is designed to deliver efficiencies over the remainder of the year and medium term.

"In early help and support, overall the service is currently projecting to be within budget at year end. Purchasing care costs are £0.3m overspent which is being offset by employee savings.

"The funding outlook for the medium term is still uncertain however it is anticipated that the Council will need to identify a further £15-£20m savings by the end of 2019/20 on top of the £13m already identified for 2017/18, so it is important that we maintain our excellent track record in managing budgets and maximise the position in 2017/18 which will assist in future years."

Cabinet members will be asked to note the council's financial position at the meeting on July 17. They will also hear that the budget has seen a £2.3m benefit, thanks to low interest rates for short term borrowing.

The report also says that council tax and business rates collection are slightly behind the targets the authority set for itself, but £9.9m more cash has been collected than at the same point last year.