Residents and businesses in Rotherham are being invited to have their say on the Council's spending plans for the 2023/24 financial year as the authority aims to bridge a budget gap of up to £10m.
It’s expected that Government funding for Council services will not increase in line with inflation next year, resulting in a real-terms cut to the money available to provide essential services.
The Council will begin the formal process of setting its budget in February next year and wants to hear which services local people think should be prioritised for spending.
The Council’s current annual revenue budget is £260 million, made up of £122 million Council Tax, £79 million Business Rates and £59million in Government funding.
This money is used to provide a huge range of public services in the borough, including social care for vulnerable adults and children, road maintenance, school places, job creation, public health, support for the homeless, housing, libraries, bin collections, community safety, parks, planning and licensing.
The Council is likely to significantly overspend its budget for the current year as a result of rising inflation and energy costs, which could not have been predicted when the budget was set.
People can register their views on the Council’s website now, until the end of Sunday 22 January 2023.
Councillor Saghir Alam, Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, Community Safety and Finance: “Every resident and business is suffering financially as a result of rising inflation and energy costs – and the Council is no different.
“The prudent approach we have taken to financial management in recent years means that our finances are in a healthier position than many other local councils. However, whilst this will insulate our residents against the severity of cuts and tax increases that will be imposed elsewhere, we still face a budget gap of up to £10m for 2023/24 and it is legal requirement for Councils to set a balanced budget.
“We’re asking residents and businesses to share their feedback on the areas they think we should prioritise, the services we need to improve, what works well and what we need to do better.”
Responses to the consultation will be fed into the budget report to be considered by the Council’s Cabinet at its meeting on 14 February 2023, before the final budget is set at Full Council on 2 March 2023.