Stirling Council announced its 2024-25 budget last week focusing on addressing its shortfall of over £16 million. The council’s total revenue budget for the new year is £287 million.
A key takeaway from the announcement is that Council Tax will be frozen at last year’s levels through a grant from the Scottish Government. The £2.923 million equates to a 4.9 per cent increase in Council Tax.
The other big announcement from this meeting was a library modernisation fund of £100,000 to explore future sustainability.
It was revealed earlier that a mass closure of libraries around Stirling was on the cards, something the Save our Libraries Stirling organisation were petitioning against.
The real living wage of £12 per hour will also be applied from April 1, 2023. It will be extended to the council apprentice cohort from April 1, 2024.
Schools and education received the majority of the capital programme budget at £14.9 million.
£6.579 million of the capital programme budget will be going to maintaining roads and bridges. £1.040 million will go to technology improvements around Council services and £3.561 million to City Region Deal projects.
Whilst the Council’s core grant allocation from the Scottish Government for 2024-25 has decrease by £1.295 million, the £16.3 million shortfall of this year’s budget has been bridged.
This is from a combination of savings, a one-off reserve, an increase in fees and charges and the grant to freeze Council Tax.
The savings to bridge the Council’s shortfalls were informed by feedback from local Stirling residents who participated in The Big Conversation. More than 4,000 people got involved in this, both in person and online.
41 saving proposals were rejected, with 98 saving proposals accepted.
Proposals
Amongst the rejected savings was removing the events budget for Bloody Scotland, Stirling Science Festival, Christmas Lights Switch on and Stirling’s 900th anniversary. A reduction in community centres, the education psychology service and supported bus services were also rejected.
Saving proposals that were accepted included removing funding for Stirling’s Hogmanay, a reduction in the libraries budget and a reduction in grant funding to groups such as Citizen’s Advice, Stirling’s Community, and Voluntary Enterprise.
Most controversial was the cutting of the P5 primary school swimming programme, which received backlash online. Many parents were angry and concerned due to the importance of this life skill and also how expensive swimming lessons are. Others questioned the validity of keeping Christmas lights over the swimming programme, noting how for many children it’s their only chance to learn how to swim.
Statement from the Council
Stirling Council Leader, Councillor Chris Kane, was aware of the difficult decisions the Council had to make.
“While I’m pleased we have been able to agree a budget, it has been extremely painful to deliver one with so many savings attached to it that cover a wide range of services.
“However, there was acknowledgement across all political groups today that difficult decisions were unavoidable given the unprecedented financial pressures facing Stirling Council and every Scottish local authority.
“The unfortunate reality is that huge pressures on local government finances will remain over the coming years and we need to continue taking steps to secure the council’s long-term financial sustainability so we can deliver the key services we all rely on.”
Featured Image Credit: Visit Scotland
Film, Media and Journalism student who writes about things that catch her interest. Instagram @charlsutcliffe
