Council sets out plans to tackle £20m budget gap

Nicholas Thomas, local democracy reporter

A cash-strapped council could automate more services and make many of its forms online-only in a bid to save money.

Newport City Council said it has estimated a £20.8m budget gap next year due to the rising cost of providing services.

It has announced the first series of budget-saving measures designed to address that shortfall, which could reduce the gap by around £4.6m.

Innovation

Council leader Dimitri Batrouni warned Newport was “no different” from other local authorities facing difficult choices, and said he wanted to “concentrate on innovation that will put us in a good place long-term”.

Cabinet members will meet next week to discuss the early plans to tackle the budget gap, most of which will be decided by themselves or by council officers – but two proposals will require public consultation.

“The main focus for us is how we can modernise services and be more efficient,” explained Cllr Batrouni. “Across the board we are looking at opportunities through collaboration, income generation and use of the latest technical solutions.

“One such proposal is a council-wide review to identify where automation could allow us to deliver services more effectively.”

Developing “automated processes and customer self-serve facilities” will improve efficiency but could also mean the loss of three jobs, according to a council report.

Parking permits

The council is proposing making forms online-only for services such as parking permits, school admissions and blue badges, and asking residents who need a physical copy to print it themselves.

The public will be asked to have their say on both those proposals.

Meanwhile, dozens of other money-saving ideas will be decided internally,

Among them, the council plans to “save” money by revising its budgets for things like means-tested social care, a planned review of a regional frailty service, and various branches of the education department.

It also proposes shopping around for better contracts for utilities, staff phones and public wifi.

Work to reduce the number of fostering placements at private agencies will, it is hoped, show a return on investments, as will spending on school kitchens and making council buildings more energy efficient.

The council will develop a “chargeable but affordable” pest control service, and also install automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras in its multi-storey car parks to improve efficiency.

More than three-quarters of Newport City Council’s income comes from the annual Welsh Government settlement, and this year’s sum is expected to be announced in December, following suggestions of extra funding for Wales in the recent Autumn Statement.

Cllr Batrouni said: “The chancellor announced that the Welsh Government will receive a £1.7 billion top-up on its settlement in 2025/26, bringing it to £21 billion in total – the largest in real terms in the history of devolution.

“We want to work closely with the Welsh Government to reduce the financial stress the council is experiencing. Our commitment is to feed that back into the services our community rely on.”

The public consultation on the initial proposals will open on November 14. To have your say, visit here.