First, some context. Councils like Wokingham, with responsibility for adult and children’s social care, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and homelessness prevention and relief, provide vital local services that can make a real difference to the quality of peoples’ lives.
The community’s increasing need for support, and the rising costs of providing it, are putting more and more councils under financial strain. A recent survey by the Local Government Association revealed that one in four councils anticipate financial collapse over the next two years.
Thankfully, Wokingham is not in this situation. The current administration’s tough decisions to make savings or generate extra income have kept us afloat. The IMPOWER consultancy recently assessed core service productivity, or outcomes achieved per pound spent, in English councils that provide social care for adults and children. Wokingham was ranked fifth out of 150 councils.
But despite our sound financial management, we are not immune from the pressures facing councils across the country. More than two-thirds of our spending is now on adult and children’s social care; once other statutory services are added, there is not much money left for everything else.
Now the budget.
Some of what the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced is very welcome.
The commitment to provide extra funding for Affordable Housing schemes should help us to bid successfully for grants to address local housing needs.
The extension to the Household Support Fund will help local families in financial hardship.
Crucially, extra money was promised for councils with adult and children’s social care responsibilities.
In December will be told Wokingham’s share of the new money, but we cannot expect a great deal if the government uses the established formula for determining how much money each council gets. Historically we have received the least core revenue support from government of any council in England that provides adult and children’s services.
The current funding formula is based almost wholly on levels of recorded deprivation. Wokingham appears by this measure to be well off, even though many in the borough are only just managing and some are forced to use foodbanks to sustain themselves and their families.
The funding formula takes no account of the true costs of paying for adult and children’s services, which are rising every year. These costs fall on councils regardless of their level of recorded deprivation.
Perhaps the new government will change the funding formula, but we have no reason to believe that will happen soon. Until the formula is reformed, we will continue to be at a financial disadvantage.
Unfortunately, in some respects the budget added to our challenges.
While the NHS is exempted from the rise in employers’ National Insurance contributions, councils are not. It will cost us an additional £1.5 million.
The increase in the minimum wage is very good news for those on low pay, but without extra funding from central government to cover it, the council must find £2 million from its own very limited resources.
In other words, Wokingham Borough Council, following the budget, needs to make another £3.5 million of savings, on top of those already programmed, just to stand still.Stephen Conway is the leader of Wokingham Borough Council
