The Isle of Wight have this afternoon released their budget papers for 2015/16.
Leader of the council, Cllr Jonathan Bacon, explained earlier today the savings of £14.5m in the coming year were being “used in the best possible way to minimise pain”.
The focus for the council will be to use the budget to protect their four main priority areas:
- Supporting growth in the economy, making the Island a better place and keeping it safe
- Keeping children safe and improving their education
- Protecting the most vulnerable with health and social care, investing in support prevention and continuing care
- Ensuring that all the resources available to the Island are used in the most effective way in achieving the Island’s priorities.
As the council strive to make savings, £14.5m in the coming year and further £8.5m in 2016/17 they plan to work with the community to take on other services.
The role of town and parish councils
An emphasis on town and parish councils taking more responsibility for funding services their residents have direct benefit of, is being made within the latest budget proposals.
Deputy leader, Cllr Steve Stubbings, has spent time speaking the town and parish councils and said he’d received mixed reactions from them.
Some, he said, had their heads buried in the sand, others were embracing the opportunity to create a closer relationship with their residents.
It was not the job of the town and parish councils to keep precepts low, if it had an impact on the welfare of the residents, he said.
£2m contingency from Reserves
The budget papers (embedded below for your convenience) reveal where the council plans to make savings as well as ideas for increasing income such as introducing charging for foot passengers on the Cowes Floating Bridge and the development of a Business Centre.
Managing Director of the council, Dave Burbage, said it would be a stretch to make all the savings needed in the 2015/16 budget, so £2m was being taken from Reserves and Balances as a contingency figure should there be some slippage in certain areas.
Pump priming community services
Money could be spent to pump prime initiatives that will help services become more sustainable, such as community bus services.
Support would be given to town and parish councils to take over some of the services that are currently funded by the local authority but of benefit to local residents.
Council Tax increase
Last year the Labour Group proposed a 1.99% increase which was then accepted by the majority.
The administration propose to increase the council tax again by 1.99% this year.
If they don’t, they’ll have to find further savings elsewhere of £555,000 due to the Government’s council tax freeze proposals.
Cowes Floating Bridge
Following the consultation carried out last year, the council propose to introduce foot passenger fares for the Cowes Floating Bridge.
Ticket machines on each side of the River Medina will issue return tickets for 70p or 40p is paying by Smartcard. Under 18s and those with a free bus pass will not be charged.
School crossing patrols
Although the council aim to cease funding the school crossing patrols, they will not cut the service unless someone else takes over the funding of it.
Schools are being approached to include the cost in their budgets and there’s also an opportunity for businesses to sponsor the school crossing patrols.
Community toilet scheme
The council still plan to close several toilets across the Island to make budget savings, but aim to ensure that more toilets are actually available for residents and visitors through the Community Toilet Scheme.
Several organisations have already expressed an interest in taking part in the scheme.
Community bus services
Still on the list for possible savings are community bus services.
Although the council have decided to not make any changes for the disabled residents’ passes, they will be withdrawing the funding for community bus services and looking towards others to take on the running costs for those routes.
The council say they will help facilitate transferring the service to new providers with pump priming and other support.
“It’ll help flush out the services that are realistic to run,” said Cllr Stubbings.
Cuts to other bus services
Subsidised bus services will also be the target of budget savings.
Bus services the local operator deems as uneconomic for it to run without the council subsidy will no longer receive funding from the council.
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Article edits
£85.m amended to £8.5m
Amended council tax reference, adding that last year it was proposed by Labour Group and accepted by the majority.
Image: Simon Haytack under CC BY 2.0
