We all know that the spending cuts are a fact of life and that the Country simply has to save money. The announcements on October 20th outlined those, but as usual, the devil will be in the detail.
My major concerns are that the rural areas are not unfairly hit, that the elderly and the vulnerable are safeguarded and that jobs and education in Shropshire are supported and improved. Especially in Ludlow Constituency!
The budget given to the Council by the Government to address these cuts lacks detail, which is concerning. However, it does seem that the social care budgets appear to have been spared the worst .
Areas being hit include Children and Young Peoples services which includes many schools and children’s services, a cut of £1.983 million, road safety, roads maintenance (never a huge budget in Shropshire), buses and housing.
The Council will need to find an extra £16 million of savings on top of £50 million they are already working on for the next 4 years. It does appear that this government has not taken our rurality into account. That is worrying.
How badly this affects Cleobury will be dependant on how innovative the Council is and how they prioritise the services we all receive. It could be an opportunity to do things differently and better or it could hit the less well off and the vulnerable disproportionately.