Gathering Views on Budget 2011
Friday 19th
November 2010
Bedford Borough Council’s comprehensive, wide-ranging consultation
on its budget proposals for 2011/12 continued apace this week with
events seeking the views of the voluntary sector and local
businesses. Over 90 Voluntary and Community Services
representatives from across the Borough were in attendance at a
meeting on Monday to discuss the Council’s proposals for saving
over £10 million in 2011/12.
The Council was one of
the first authorities in the country to put forward proposals for
its 2011 budget. This is to give the
Borough’s residents, businesses, voluntary and community groups,
staff, recognised trades unions and everyone who uses the Council’s
services, the opportunity to help shape the budget.
One of the propositions currently out to
consultation is a proposal to review the way the Borough Council
funds voluntary and community sector partners.
The Council is strongly aware of the
importance of working with and enabling our Voluntary and Community
Sector (VCS) partners. As a result, there will be no overall
reduction in the total amount of financial assistance grant being
given to the VCS.
The Mayor of Bedford Borough, Dave Hodgson,
was present to listen to the views and to take questions from the
VCS.
The Mayor said: “We are very keen to discover
ways in which we can continue to support our VCS partners. We are
an open and transparent Council and work collectively to secure the
best possible outcomes for all parties.”
The objectives of the proposals are:
- To provide greater transparency for VCS partners in terms of
how to access funding through the Council
- To streamline and simplify the application process
- To simplify and ensure consistency in the accounting and
associated performance management arrangements across the council
where funding is provided; and
- For a small number of “core partners” to be provided with
longer-term certainty of funding (i.e. funded over more than a
year)
Later in the day the
Mayor, Dave Hodgson, and Cllr Michael Headleyheld a consultation
session with local business figures. Individuals were invited in to
the Council Chamber at Borough Hall, to chat about the Council’s
response to the plans. The event was attended by
approximately 20 local businesses and was a good chance for the
Mayor to highlight plans for the 2011/12 budget, and to hear local
businesses’ points of view.
Rod J Calvert OBE, Bedfordshire Chamber of
Commerce, said: “Bedford Borough Council has embraced economic
growth as part of its core strategy. It is key that we balance both
sides of the economic equation and in addition to cuts we create
wealth and revenue through employment. By preserving the
Economic Development budget,
Bedford Borough Council is signalling strongly that Bedford is open
for and encouraging business, a stance that the Chamber of Commerce
fully supports.”
Full details of each of the proposals and how
they can help the Council achieve a balanced budget can be found on
the Council’s website: www.bedford.gov.uk/budget2011
(the website includes a detailed questionnaire to help collect
local views).
The closing date for responses is 30 November
2010. This will allow any comments to be considered by the
Council’s Executive on 8 December 2010.
The Council will formally consider the budget for
2011/12 at its Full Council meeting in February 2011.