Controversial plans to partly shut recycling centres and cut funding for mobile libraries, as a council looks to save £13m, are to come under the spotlight.
Norfolk County Council needs to save £60m in 2023/24 to balance its budget and recently revealed where the first tranche of savings could be made.
The Conservative-controlled cabinet recently agreed to put £13m of savings forward for inclusion in its budget for next year.
The savings include:
- £6.45m from adult social services, including use of reserves and more savings from existing programmes.
- £3m from children’s services, including selling off the Professional Development Centre in Woodside, Norwich. The centre is currently used for conferences, training days and exhibitions and is available for hire by community groups.
- £2.1m from community and environmental services, including a review of the mobile library service, Wednesday closures of recycling centres and reduction of weedkilling on highways to one treatment per year.
- Reducing Norfolk Record Office opening hours, with savings of £22,000.
- Cutting funding to Norfolk Windmills Trust, which cares for 21 buildings across Norfolk, 13 of which are owned or leased by Norfolk County Council. That would save £20,000.
The cuts and savings proposals will come before the scrutiny committee, made up of councillors from all political groups at County Hall, next week.
Labour group leader Steve Morphew, chair of the scrutiny committee, said: "With current uncertainties and the cost of living crisis, how the council spends our money is more crucial than ever.
“The services Norfolk relies on face unprecedented pressure. The job of scrutiny is to probe the options and give challenge to those making the decisions.”
Members of the public can submit questions to the meeting, by contacting committees@norfolk.gov.uk by 5pm on Thursday, July 14.
The scrutiny committee can consider whether the decision which the cabinet made is appropriate and does have the power to recommend that the decision makers reconsider their decision.
The final decision over what cuts and savings will be made will rest with the full council when recommendations comes forward as part of next year’s budget in January 2023.
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