2011/2012 audited annual accounts - Falkirk Council

13. FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
FALKIRK COUNCIL
The Council’s revenue budget strategy will continue to reflect the priorities set out in the Council’s Corporate
Plan and the Strategic Community Plan which was approved by the Council in December 2010. The grant
settlement includes continued funding of £0.6m to address the threat of flooding and whilst this funding is not
ring-fenced, the Council has been able to retain this money within the Development Services budget. The
Revenue Budget also includes a continuation of resources to deliver key government policies and programmes
specified in the 2011 Spending Review such as maintaining teacher numbers, freezing council tax and
maintaining the grant for the Police Service.
In addition to the above, the Scottish Government has continued provision for a new Change Fund which will
provide bridging finance to facilitate shifts in the balance of care from institutional to primary and community
settings. The fund will be distributed through NHS boards and the spending of these resources will be overseen
by a local partnership governance arrangement on the basis of local change plans which are agreed between NHS
Boards, local government and the third/independent sectors. The allocation to the Falkirk partnership for the
years 2012/13 to 2014/15 is £2.154m/£2.154m/£1.885m in each of the three years respectively.
The Scottish Government has also introduced the Early Years Change Fund to finance a shift towards a
preventative model of service delivery. Falkirk Council’s allocations for the years 2012/13 to 2014/15 are
£0.622m/£1.093m/£1.558m.
In recognition of the need for ongoing efficiency savings, a below inflation increase in government grant and
additional cost pressures of £9.9m, the Council’s budget strategy required all areas of expenditure and income to
be subject to detailed scrutiny. This included:
• A contribution of £3.4m from reserves
• Savings of £6.6m identified across all Services whilst minimising the impact on Service delivery
The Council will also continue to focus on a strategic approach to the generation of efficiencies which aims to
prioritise efficiencies that minimise the impact on services provided. To this end, a corporate working group has
been established to further develop the Council’s approach to medium term financial planning.
Notwithstanding the above, the 2012/13 budget includes funding for a number of priority areas including:
• Tackling the unacceptable level of unemployment amongst young people (£0.690m)
• Falkirk Employability award (£0.160m)
• Employment of 3 additional Welfare Advice staff (£0.100m)
• Roads Maintenance (£0.500m)
• Introduction of nurture groups in Primary Schools (£0.180m)
• Environmental community enhancements (£0.100m)
• Parks strategy (£0.160m)
• Sports initiatives for young people (£0.180m)
• Net effect of introducing the Living Wage (£0.230m)
The Council will approve a three year capital investment plan for all areas of service delivery. This plan will
help the Council and its Services to meet Community, Corporate and Service Plan priorities and improve
facilities for the Falkirk area and its community. In respect of Housing, the Council will continue to develop and
monitor the Standard Development Plan, which outlines how the Council will improve its housing stock to meet
the Scottish Quality Standard by 2015 and maintain that standard going forward. The 3 year investment
programme also provides resources for a new build programme of 318 houses.
14. IMPACT OF ECONOMIC CLIMATE
The Council is not immune from the impact of the economic downturn and has experienced a reduction in
certain income streams e.g. planning applications and has encountered considerable difficulty in generating
capital receipts from asset disposals while demand for services has not reduced. The Council’s investment plans
for 2012/13 have anticipated an ongoing lower level of receipts from asset disposals and this will be monitored
on an ongoing basis.
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