Like me, I expect many chief executives and officers will be taking their budgets to committee just now.
This year will be difficult for many. Plans put in place for 2009/2010 may not have achieved the expected budget and service outcomes. And these underperforming areas of income or savings will add to future challenges for 2010/2011 – especially where they are ongoing.
Compared with the 201 English shire districts, this year, Tandridge received the fourth-lowest government grant, at just above 37% of its expenditure, compared with a national average of almost 57%. On a per head of population basis, we receive the ninth-lowest grant.
At Tandridge, we have been introducing initiatives to cope with this difficult situation, including developing our workforce, succession planning, maximising our income, building on our partnership work and achieving greater efficiencies from modernisation.
One of our significant achievements has been to set a balanced budget, despite the effect of existing and new financial challenges. The most rewarding outcome for me has been achieving this, while avoiding staff redundancies, or having to make major service cuts.
There has been regular dialogue between staff, managers and councillors, resulting in a ballot in December 2009 on whether or not to forego the second year of a two-year pay deal for 2010/2011.
The result was very positive, with two-thirds agreeing to forego a 2.8% pay increase. This made a significant saving of £250,000 to our budget. In addition, a recruitment freeze has been in place since October 2008, which has made an additional saving of £375,000.
To achieve further savings, we are taking forward our Tandridge Modernisation Programme. As part of this, we invited staff to come forward with proposals, supported by financial and service business cases, including:
flexible working/reduced hours
early, voluntary and flexible retirement
sabbaticals
These have been taken up by some staff, and achieved a further £245,000, bringing the total contribution of staff savings to £900,000, equivalent to a council tax rise of almost 13%.
Councillors have appreciated this significant financial contribution, and have themselves voted to freeze their allowances.
This is the ‘Tandridge way’ of doing things.
Stephen Weigel is chief executive of Tandridge DC
