Lancashire County Council considers job cuts as it anticipates an overspend of £17.7m due to ‘circumstances outside of the council's control’.
The local authority has said that while the financial health of the council is good, expenditure is expected to increase over the coming years due to rising inflation and the increasing cost of living.
The council is forecasting a revenue overspend for this year of £17.7m, against the overall revenue budget of £948.107m. Based on the council’s current forecasts, this is expected to rise to a shortfall of £87m for 2023/24, rising to £159.678m by 2026/27.
The increase is the result of a number of factors including the impact of rising levels of inflation, a higher than originally anticipated proposed national staff pay award and increasing demand for adult and children's services.
Cllr Alan Vincent, deputy leader of Lancashire County Council, said: ‘As a council we have successfully faced much tougher financial challenges in the past few years and because of our active stewardship our financial health is good, with healthy reserves.’
However, he warned that there is a lot of uncertainty when it comes to national finances which in turn impacts the council’s financial position. Cllr Vincent said that the local authority would look to maximise efficiencies and increase income, but he cautioned that job cuts might come further down the road.
‘Wholescale staffing reductions are not something we are currently considering but if wage and inflationary pressures continue to rise that reluctance would have to be tempered by the harsh realities that pressure creates,’ he said.
Shropshire Council has also warned that it is facing a predicted overspend of up to £18.8m due to inflation, rising energy costs, and the growing demand for council services.
