Jobs to go in more cash cuts

Published 29 Jul 2010 09:00

More jobs and cash earmarked for a flood relief scheme are set to be axed as councillors face more budget cuts tonight (Thursday).

Some £200,000 previously earmarked to meet government flooding guidelines will now not be spent and flood defences will continue at the current level.

A further 100 council jobs will also go by March next year, including compulsory redundancies, on top of five redundancies approved in March. The authority has 1,527 staff, not including school workers.

Remaining staff will be made to pay to park at the council offices in Shute End and funding for school musical instruments will be slashed as part of £1.2m belt-tightening measures labelled a 'transformation programme'.

Council bosses said this week the programme was a response to a cut in central government funding and in anticipation of further funding cuts from Westminster in October. Council leader David Lee said: "Public spending is being squeezed nationally and we face significant challenges if we are to make sure our communities continue to get a high standard of service.

"Rather than make reactive cuts to budgets we have looked at our priorities and allocated out budgets accordingly, which we believe is the logical way to approach the level of savings we have to make."

Berkshire Connexions, the careers advice and support service for young people funded by all local authorities in the Royal County, will receive £100,000 less from Wokingham, and cuts to the service are also due from Reading and West Berkshire councils. Resources supporting youngsters in schools through workshops like the Berkshire Maestros will be "targeted at those schools with greatest need" as £60,000 is cut from their budget. Mr Lee said schools would have to work together more to share experiences and help each other maintain standards.

Council chief executive Susan Law said of the job cuts: "We will do this by shedding agency staff, holding vacant posts and redeploying existing staff, but some compulsory redundancies will be necessary." Mrs Law said consultations with staff had already begun and said areas affected would be contract management, strategic support and administration.

Single people could also be hit as the council intends to "rigorously review" each claimant of its 25% council tax discount, which it has identified as a possible £148,000 income stream. The plans will go before the council executive tonight (Thursday) and Mr Lee said the aim was to "future-proof services for residents".

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This article appeared in Villager 29 Jul 10

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