Plymouth residents are being asked to give their views as the City Council works on balancing its budget for next year in the face of ongoing challenges caused by rising costs and demand for services.
The Cabinet has agreed a draft Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) that will guide the Council’s work to address the cost pressures, maintain local services and continue delivering the priorities for the city.
The five-year plan, which projects the resources available against the costs, sets out the measures the Council is already taking to ensure it can deliver vital local services in future years.
It is guiding work to ensure a balanced budget for 2025/26 can be set in February and as part of this, the Council is inviting feedback from residents and businesses on the key themes and priorities in the plan.
Councillor Mark Lowry, Cabinet member for Finance, said: “While we are very encouraged that the new Government has already announced that it will be increasing the core spending power of councils next year, and has made a firm commitment to provide councils with multi-year financial settlements in future, we cannot afford to underestimate the challenges that still lie ahead.
“There’s no question that despite this positive change in approach and the willingness to address longstanding systemic problems that face all councils, the financial outlook will continue to be tough. There aren’t any quick solutions to our biggest challenges, not least the ongoing cost and demand pressures in social care, homelessness and special educational needs.
“We have been working hard to stabilise budgets and tackle these pressures and our medium-term financial plan aims to ensure our we have a sustainable approach to maintaining local services and continuing to deliver the top priorities for the city.
“I would encourage people to give their views on our priorities and plans and to suggest ideas for saving money as we continue working on our draft budget for next year.”
Residents can give their views on our consultation site.