“Today, Shropshire Council has launched its budget consultation for 2025/26, to hear the views of as many people as possible as it plans to overcome its financial challenge.
You can find the survey here: www.shropshire.gov.uk/budget25 .
The consultation runs until SUNDAY 26th JANUARY 2025.
Like councils all over the country, Shropshire has felt the impact of rising demand and cost for social care and must prioritise services for the vulnerable people who need them most. Almost 80% of the council’s budget is now spent on social care.
The total savings needed for 2025/26 are not yet clear. It won’t be until after the Local Government Financial Settlement is announced in the week beginning 16 December that the council will know its potential budget for the next financial year although the full impact of this won’t be clear until January.
The proposals in the consultation will have an impact for services but may not go far enough to reach the balanced budget the council is legally required to set.
All political groups on Shropshire Council have agreed to put these ideas for savings into a consultation, for people to have their say. In a joint statement, the leaders of political groups on Shropshire Council said:
“In the last year, the council has had to make some very difficult decisions, many things we never wanted to do but now have no choice but to do, to keep the council in budget.
“These suggestions for savings are being put forward as the council is left with little choice. What we have now, like many other councils, is a difficult and unenviable budgetary situation.
“However, we are where we are. As Political Groups within the Council we don’t all sign up to some of the items put forward in the consultation and it is likely that individual groups will not support some or all of the suggestions. These are difficult times, and we have worked together for the best interests of our Shropshire residents.
“People in Shropshire are noticing more and more the impact of the council’s financial challenge, from charging for garden waste collections to fewer roads repairs and the council reducing its size by around 1 in 5 jobs.
“However, we will need to do more next year and we now need to consider what some of those options could be. This is why we want to hear the public’s views on these.
“Whatever the Government’s financial settlement later in December is, we are sure that with the ever-growing need for social care and rising costs for services that council tax increases will not cover, more difficult decisions are ahead.
“So please tell us what you think about these ideas to make more savings.”
Copies of the consultation document are also available at the following Shropshire Council libraries: Bayston Hill, Bridgnorth, Church Stretton, The Lantern (Shrewsbury), Ludlow, Market Drayton, Much Wenlock, Oswestry, Pontesbury, Shrewsbury and Wem and at our Shropshire Local centres in Ludlow, Shrewsbury and mobile services. Residents in Whitchurch can take part in the survey at the sports centre whilst the library is being relocated.