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RESIDENTS across Wellingborough will have their chance tomorrow, to voice their opinions about £750,000 of proposed savings and budget cuts. A consultation event organised by Wellingborough Council will be held in the Swansgate shopping centre on Saturday. Leading members of Wellingborough Council will be on hand between 10am and 2pm to explain the proposals and ask people for their thoughts and ideas. A public consultation has been running since the end of December, when the council’s resources committee discussed a shortfall in next year’s budget. They announced council services from April will cost just over £9.35m to provide, but government grants and council tax would only bring in £8.6m. The committee decided on a list of possible ways that the extra money could be found, and since then people have been able to comment on the proposals on the council’s website and by picking up leaflets from receptions. Suggestions to make up the shortfall include reducing stationery and training budgets, stopping free drinks at meetings, and restructuring the council’s management. Increasing charges at Glamis Hall day centre, hiring out council meeting rooms, and allowing advertising in the multi-storey car park are also things that are being considered. Leader of the Council, Cllr Paul Bell, who is hosting the event on Saturday, said: “We have already identified a significant amount of savings over the past couple of years, but we still need to find another £750,000 to balance the books for next year. “We have a list of ways that we can make up this shortfall, and we want to know what the public think. “We’ll be asking people to tell us if we have our priorities right, and if we have thought of the best ways that we can reduce costs and raise income or if there are other ideas we could look at. “It’s important we know what people think before any final decisions are made. “We know people often have opinions about the council and how we’re providing services for people in Wellingborough and now is their chance to come and talk to councillors in person to give us their views directly. “These budget decisions could affect anyone in the borough so we’d like to encourage as many people as possible to come along on Saturday and take part.” Wellingborough councillors will be in the Swansgate, near to BB’s café, on Saturday morning between 10am and 2pm. Once all the consultation responses have been collated they will be discussed by the resources committee on February 22 before a meeting of the full council approves the final budget on March 1. |
