Derbyshire County Council has proposed a series of cuts in the face of an £18.6m shortfall for the next financial year.
The council’s proposals include using AI to ‘streamline and automate’ social care services; a review of extra care housing; cutting transport provision in adult social care; and reducing its property portfolio.
The authority is also commissioning a review of its operating model to ensure it is ‘considering all available opportunities to reduce costs through rationalisation and improvement’.
In December, the council revealed it was set to overspend by £28.1m this year. It then paused recruitment in some areas; froze and deleted vacancies; reviewed its use of agency staff and limited procurement to ‘essential areas’.
Council leader Barry Lewis said: ‘While we have made a step change in the way we identify and deliver savings, the pressures keep increasing, so we are focussing on ways to reduce those pressures and also fundamentally changing our operating model, including automating and digitising support services where we can.
‘The situation around adults and children’s social care is serious for all councils but we are taking action to challenge how we deliver it, and also working as One Council to bring functions together and challenge all day-to-day expenditure.’
