Andy Munns
Wiltshire Council has provided its first formal update of the 2023/24 financial year as it continues to manage its budgets despite the continuing unpredictability of the economy and pressures faced by councils.
Amid a national backdrop of local authorities struggling with their finances and authorities like Birmingham effectively announcing they are bankrupt, Wiltshire Council believe they are bucking the trend.
Wiltshire Council Leader Richard Clewer told Salisbury Radio, “We’ve all heard about Birmingham essentially going bankrupt. There are a lot of other councils going that way.
“I want to reassure Wiltshire residents that our finances are under control.
“Three months into the year, we have an overspend of £300,000. Now overspending is not a good thing, but we normally have an overspend at this stage. That will be reduced to nothing over the coming months, but it’s normally several million (pounds) at this stage.
“We really have got a tight control on finance. We are investing in prevention, we are putting money in, and we’ve put money into Children’s Services, on housing and as a result, we are not seeing the big expenditure that other councils are. We have it under control.”
The council has published its first-quarter revenue and capital monitoring positions, which inform its financial forecasts for the year.
At the end of the first quarter, there is a small forecast overspend of around £0.3m, equating to less than 0.1% of the budget.
More than £26m of savings were identified to be made during 2023/24 and, at the end of the first quarter, more than £6.2m has already been achieved (around 24%), with a further £15.7m on track to be delivered (around 60%).
The council says it will continue to robustly monitor its finances and focus on delivering savings.
The council also says it has taken a long-term strategic approach to its budget, which included effectively setting the next three years’ budgets in February, and this means it believes it is in a stronger position to respond positively to any unexpected issues.
Cllr Nick Botterill, Cabinet Member for Finance, said: “At a time when local councils’ finances are a presenting a significant challenge up and down the country, Wiltshire Council continues to be in a much better position than most others.
“This is due to our forward planning, focus on cost control and savings delivery, which means we’re in control of our finances and able to do more in a self-sufficient way than other councils.
“We will continue to monitor our own financial situation prudently, robustly and in a transparent way, which will ensure that should any unforeseen issues emerge then we are very well equipped to deal with them.
“We remain an ambitious council, and now more than ever, we have to ensure the money we spend is adding value and supporting our communities; we’ll continue to look at all opportunities to invest in the future of our county.”
