Backing for council overhaul?

The council is looking at ambitious plans to overhaul the way services are delivered as it grapples with a further £77 million budget shortfall caused by substantial cuts in Government funding, despite already saving £100 million and shedding 3,000 jobs since 2010.

A total of 501 people completed the ‘redefining your council’ survey, which aimed to consult residents about proposed cuts in services.

Of those who voted, 58 per cent agreed strongly with the authority’s overall approach, while 62 per cent said they felt the council should force closer working links with private sector companies.

Around 25 per cent of those who completed the survey expressed concerns over the cuts, the council said.

Council leader Coun Alan Rhodes said: “Despite facing a near impossible situation of rising demand for services and huge Government funding cuts, we are taking a constructive approach to look hard at what we do and the way we do things to identify any opportunities to save money and change how we do things.

“Although we’ve already managed to make substantial savings totalling £100 million, we have to recognise that as there is less and less money available and more and more demand for our services, the decisions we face will get harder and harder.”

The results of the consultation will be considered by councillors at a meeting on Wednesday 2nd July.