JOBS look set to go and fewer roads will be gritted as East Sussex County Council (ESCC) struggles to cope with a predicted £54 million hole in this year’s budget.
Cabinet members received the latest updates on the authority’s finances in December and are considering extra savings totalling £3.1 million – on top of the £3.2 million from ongoing savings that will be realised in 2026/27.
The final budget decisions will be made by ESCC full council in February month but the new cuts would affect 150 jobs and cover a range of services – including saving £275,000 by reducing the amount of roads treated in bad weather.
But the council, in a dire financial situation with depleted reserves (savings), admits these additional cuts “go nowhere near meeting the shortfall” and it has called on Govt for emergency support to help it balance its budget. It has previously said it faces its most challenging financial situation ever.
And there remains an unanswered question over how the remaining £50million deficit will be addressed.
ESCC which has had to save more than £120million since 2010 under previous Conservative Governments, says new Labour Government reforms will leave people in East Sussex worse off because more money is being directed to other local authorities.
“The rural character and elderly population of East Sussex are not recognised in these reforms which were intended to be fairer, but which overlook the growing needs of the county.” It says.
The council says there is higher demand for services, more complex needs amongst those seeking support, and increased costs, particularly in children’s services and adult social care.
Despite the county council’s best and ongoing efforts to highlight needs of the county, recent funding announcements by Government offer “no positive news for East Sussex”. The national Budget Statement offered no new funding for local authorities to meet these pressures and the long-awaited Fair Funding Review failed to fully recognise the challenges East Sussex is facing.
To save the extra £3.1m proposals include staffing restructures in support services in Adult Social Care, withdrawal of funding from the integrated night service at the end of the current contract, and a reduction in project support capacity.
In Children’s Services, a review of staffing in the education team will seek efficiencies and there is a proposal to stop payments for term time university accommodation for care leavers in favour of alternative support.
A review of the current archive service, changes to back-office provision in the library and information service, and a review of library stock are being proposed for the Communities, Economy and Transport teams. Reductions in staffing budgets and the reduction of property costs achieved by moving coroner courts into Westfield House, County Hall will also contribute to the proposed savings target.
The new proposals, should they be progressed, would affect 150 staff posts across the council – equivalent to 100 full time posts.
An East Sussex County Council spokesperson said: “With an anticipated budget deficit in 2026/27 of £54million we are having to consider areas across the council where savings could be made to ensure we can deliver a balanced budget whilst safeguarding the services that protect the most vulnerable in our communities.
“As part of this work, potential savings have been identified in our winter service budget. It’s important to stress that no decision has been made and work is ongoing to consider the impact of any potential changes.”
NB: The council’s budget, including the above cuts and council tax levels are due to be discussed by the ESCC Cabinet on 27 January. The final budget decisions will be made at ESCC full council on 10 February