City council cuts savings target by £15m, credits boost in Government funding

The City of Wolverhampton Council has partly credited the bump in Government funding for plans to cut the local authority’s savings target by almost half over the next two years.

According to a budget report approved by the council's cabinet yesterday, the local authority is set to balance its budget and reduce the amount it plans to save from £32.6m to £17.2m by 2026/2027.

However, the report warned that there are still "major challenges ahead".

The report said: "The reality is that our funding levels no longer meet the level of service we currently provide.

"Between 2010 and 2024, the council has seen its core spending power decrease by 17.4% in real terms, over the same time period our settlement funding has decreased by an estimated 63.6%."

It blamed significant and growing demand pressures in adult social care, temporary accommodation, SEND, and children's social care.

It also pointed to high inflation and a need in the council to "continually innovate" to ensure its future efficiency.

Commenting on the news, council leader Stephen Simkins said Wolverhampton was able to bring down its deficit after "lots of hard work to deliver savings proposals and some additional funding from the new Government".

He added: "This doesn't mean the financial challenges have gone away – far from it. There is still a lot of hard work to be done and more difficult decisions ahead, but we will never stop being ambitious for our city.

"By managing the financial challenge and making savings in some areas, we are able to invest more in what matters most to our residents."

Councillors are set to discuss the budget for 2025/26 at a full council meeting next week (26 February).

The Government confirmed its final local government finance settlement for 2025-26 of £69bn on 3 February, which it claimed would provide councils with a 6.8% cash-terms increase in core spending power.

Adam Carey