ONE of the Council’s key annual tasks is to prepare the budget. At times, the numbers seem almost too large to think about clearly – a net budget of around £143m – which has to serve over 210,000 people.

At the same time, we are starting a £48m, three-year programme of cuts. Around £12m of these will be due to a reduction in central government grant, but the remaining £36m is simply due to demographic pressure. As the population grows, there are more elderly and vulnerable people and children for whom we must provide help.

We have already made £60m of savings in the last five years, and we have embarked on five major change programmes to ensure that we get the best results for our strategic goals. We are still doing this, and part of this year’s savings comes from just being more cost effective.

However, this is no longer just an efficiency drive to make sure we do what we have always done, but cheaper. This is a wholesale challenge to how we do things, and may mean that services change radically to achieve what Swindon and its residents need.

Where specific services are changing as part of the budget, there will be individual consultations with service users. In addition to this, we have already consulted on other major innovations, such as the changes to recycling and green waste.

You can find details of the whole budget proposal and those parts on which we are consulting on the Council’s website, www.swindon.gov.uk/budgetconsultation I would encourage those with views to make them known.

I would also like to clarify a mistaken understanding that the Council is sitting on £18m of cash. We’re not. This money relates to planning agreements called section 106 and the money is to help provide facilities to reduce the negative effects of new housing or other developments. This administration has a clear policy to make sure that any section 106 agreements provide the maximum benefit to the borough, and not just the immediate area around the development, as both are affected.

Let me put it this way. If at the start of the year you earmark £1,000 for holidays, and put it into a separate account, the money is clearly unallocated until you book your trip, but you cannot use that money for anything else. The section 106 money is earmarked for various schemes such as schools, roads, community facilities, but there are various reasons why it cannot be spent. For example, some work needs central government money, other projects are only required when an agreed number of houses are built. That we have this money earmarked is just an indication of how successfully we have negotiated with developers.