Council budget: Targeting support to make things fairer
How the Council is dealing with cost pressures
The Council faces big challenges, including:
- more people needing care and more complex care needs
- new laws and regulations
- issues with hiring and keeping staff
Like everyone else, the Council is dealing with rising costs and demand. Costs have at least doubled due to:
- inflation
- staffing
- cost of care
- contracts
- increased demand in adult and children's social care
- higher energy prices
Savings and cuts
Since 2010, South Tyneside Council has saved £208 million and will need to save more money in the future, including:
- £13 million in 2025 / 26
- £29.8 million by 2030 to stay financially stable
We have plans to:
- cut spending and work more efficiently across all services
- look at ways to generate more income
- reduce spending on support functions to protect frontline services
There are no major service cuts planned. Instead, we are investing in prevention and areas that will save money in the long run, like adult and children's social care accommodation.
Our transformation work focuses on four key areas:
- Prevention
- Commercial opportunities
- Modernising the council
- Using evidence and engagement
We are focusing support on the residents and areas that need it most to reduce inequalities and make things fairer.
Every year, we review the budget to keep services accessible and cover rising costs. We try to keep subsidies for those who need them most.
We take a balanced approach to setting fees and charges with the need to support vulnerable people in our community, especially in adult and children's social care, which takes up a large part of the budget.
We try to keep costs low for people who are having money problems and continue to help with many services by giving financial support.
Section 114
We've seen in the news that many Councils are struggling or in difficult situations and issue section 114 notices.
A Section 114 notice is when Councils expect their spending to be more than their income for a financial year, which is not allowed under the 1988 Act.
South Tyneside Council is not in that situation. Despite some pressures this year, we are taking steps through our Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP) to reduce costs and increase income while investing in important services and assets.
We will continue to be careful with our financial planning.