The delivery of children’s services and dealing with the demand on adult social care are among the “main risks” the council faces amid a £41.6m funding gap it is fighting to plug.
A draft of the council’s financial strategy was put before the council’s cabinet last week after being refreshed as part of the annual budget setting process due in February 2024.
Previously approved budget cuts agreed in February this year mean that if they are achieved, around £10m of the overall gap over the next three years will be found.
That leaves the council with a budget gap of around £32m over the three years.
The report raised the possibility of using the council’s cash reserves to plug the gap but said that other methods "should" be used.
Cllr Richard Gold, cabinet member for finance and communities at the council, pointed out that the budget faces pressures seen by other councils such as prices rising by “25 per cent since 2018”, more demand on services and a spike in social care costs among other problems.
He also mentioned other councils such as Nottingham have had to declare section 114 notices, widely regarded as effectively declaring bankruptcy.
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Cllr Gold said: “We have a lot of work to do to set a viable plan. It’s going to mean taking some really tough decisions and it’s going to take a lot of hard work from officers.
“It’s going to be extremely tough and it’s going to get tougher if the government doesn’t address the funding issues for councils that we’ve been campaigning on in our Let’s Fix It Together campaign.”
The financial plan will review its range of services and resources before it is prepared for the budget next year.
Cllr Gold said: “Any budget contains an element of risk. In the current economic and political climate there are significant risks that can impact on the plan.
“The main risks are about the future delivery model for children’s services (and) behavioural changes in the man management programmes around foster care.
“Also the pace of academisation may impact on our capacity to deliver our saving plans, and demand on adult social care also continues to grow with pressures being seen in the working age cohort.
“Despite this, we believe we can set a three-year budget plan to take Bury Council through to 2027 but it will need discipline, some really tough decisions and a lot of work to deliver.”
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Although he accepted that there are “difficult times ahead”, council leader Cllr Eamonn O’Brien said: “We’ve got that degree of confidence that we’ve got the space and the time to still overcome those challenges if we can make the right decisions and if we can deliver on what we say.”
Bury Conservatives leader Cllr Russell Bernstein added: “We all accept that there are financial challenges across local government.
“If we can keep to what is being said about prudence and the financial position managed effectively and robustly, I’m sure that we won’t be an organisation that is the next section 114, because none of us want that.”
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The recommendations of the plan were accepted by the cabinet.
It is a legal requirement that all local authorities set a balanced budget before the start of each financial year.
And it is also a requirement that the council consult with the public on any service closures and changes.
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