Rhondda Cynon Taf Council is now looking to plug a budget gap of more than £6m for next year. Following the announcement of the Welsh Government’s provisional funding settlement for councils last week, RCT is now facing a £6.82m. budget gap for next year.
Barrie Davies, who is the council’s director of finance, updated cabinet members on the latest budget position on Monday, December 16. The council has been able to make some early budget cuts worth £10.28m, including £7.32m in efficiencies, £70,000 through the legal management structure and from decisions previously made such as £1.57m from home to school transport, £564,000 from waste collection arrangements and £750,000 from the council tax premium update.
But there’s also an additional budget requirement of £10.6m, which includes a reduction of £1.5m in the energy budget requirement, £3m in additional resources relating to specific grants, £2.5m through inescapable budget pressures such as children’s services, £1m through major weather event contingency, £3.6m through cost increases to contracted in services including living wage increases and national insurance costs, £1m through employee costs and £1m through replenishing general fund balances. Along with £29.24m in additional resources from Welsh Government this leaves a budget gap of £6.82m. To get all the latest daily Wales Online news straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.
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The Welsh Government’s provisional settlement for local councils was announced on Wednesday, December 11. The average settlement across Welsh council was 4.3% with RCT getting 4.7%. Capital funding for RCT is set to increase from £13.82m to £15.47m.
A number of transfers into the local government settlement include teachers pay and pensions, NJC pay and fire pay and pensions. There are over a £1bn of specific grants with a number still to be confirmed.
The medium term financial plan presented to cabinet and full council in September identified a budget gap of almost £92m over the next three years and £35.7m for next year alone. This followed two years of the largest budget gaps the council had ever faced.