Issue - decisions

“Creating the right conditions for businesses and our economy to grow and thrive remains a priority for the county council while managing the inflationary pressures we currently face.

We continue to do what is necessary to support those who need us most, however, increasing costs across the board along with the rising demand of social care for adults and children together with huge inflationary costs continues to put pressures on finances.

Demand for adult social care assessments and safeguarding remains high and we continue to prioritise individuals at the highest risk.  Recruitment to the service has now started, however national recruitment and retention difficulties remains a key issue.

Work to transform our children’s services is ongoing and we Continue to face pressures including the rising cost, number and complexity of Child Protection & Children in Care.  The Holiday Activity and Food programme ran through the summer supporting families by providing almost 47,000 places for children and young people. This quarter we also saw the opening of two new schools, Bramshall Meadows First School in Uttoxeter and Fradley Park Primary in Lichfield.

The Staffordshire Warmer Homes scheme continues to provide significant benefits to some of our more vulnerable residents, especially given the rising price of energy. Up to August 2022, 613 households had benefitted from 762 home installations, while over 2,300 people had received wrap around services.

We know that residents across the county remain worried about the rise in the cost of living.  To date approximately 52,000 people (including children, families and pensioners) have benefitted from £5.5 million worth of help over the summer through the Household Support Fund. We also continue to direct people to support on things like managing debt, paying bills, food and essentials, staying warm and helping others.

Staffordshire businesses are also under pressure from rising costs. So we continue to support our local economy through the Staffordshire Means Business programme, which has already supported hundreds of local companies and the creation of 400 new apprenticeships.

Despite the inflationary pressures facing councils like ours, we will invest to keep growing the county in a sustainable way to make a positive difference in the lives of our residents. We want Staffordshire people to enjoy a better quality of life, in thriving communities, and live longer in good health.”

Alan White, Leader of the Council

“All council departments continue to deliver against their priorities, whilst progressing with activities in the organisation’s delivery plan.

Good progress has been made across the organisation during the quarter, however increasing costs and inflationary pressures across the organisation are having a significant impact. In addition, workforce capacity and recruitment, and demand challenges remain, particularly within Health and Care and Families and Communities.

The latest revenue forecast outturn shows a forecast overspend of £10.908m (1.9%), prior to additional funding for inflationary pressures being taken into account.  Once this one-off funding is included and an allocation from the Inflation Reserve is assumed, the overspend reduces to £6.408m (1.1%). This is compared to an overspend of £3.643m reported at Quarter 1.

Like many local authorities, we still face financial challenges, but we continue to keep our finances in as strong a position as possible. Well managed finances ensures that we provide good value for money for local tax-payers and means we can continue to invest in our future and growing our economy.”

Ian Parry, Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources