A PREDICTED £29 million overspend by Cumberland Council has been reduced to less than £9 million, it has been revealed.

Like many local authorities across the country, Cumbria's two new unitary authorities - Cumberland and Westmorland & Furness - have been facing severe financial strain.

Speaking at Friday's (December 15) meeting of Cumberland Council's meeting of the executive committee, Cllr Barbara Cannon (St Michaels, Labour), the portfolio holder for financial planning and assets, confirmed the council was in a better financial position with its predicted overspend now down to £8.5 million, down from a projected £29 million earlier this year.

She said: "The position has improved in quarter two as opposed to the first quarter. The council is continuing to experience financial pressure in social care."

Cllr Cannon said this was also the case in children's services and added: "There have been plenty of recent reports highlighting the challenges that local authorities are facing."

She said that the Government's autumn statement had been "disappointing" and the short term option of spending the council's reserves "was not sustainable".

Councillor Mark Fryer (St Johns and Great Clifton, Labour), the leader of the council, said the predicted financial position that they found themselves in was a "stark reality" and added: "What we will do is work hard and we will make sure we are fiscally prudent."

Over the past few months, council officers have undertaken extensive reviews of services and their budgets to identify efficiencies and savings through a range of measures including reducing costs, vacancy management and service transformation.

The council said it has also sought to recruit permanent staff where previously agency staff were being used.

Work will continue in quarters three and four to both ensure the current mitigations are delivered and that where possible further savings are identified to minimise the use of council reserves, the meeting heard.

According to a council statement, many councils up and down the country are facing similar financial challenges brought about by years of reduced levels of funding but the council "remains committed to controlling rising costs in services such as adult and children's care, whilst simultaneously completing the transition to the new unitary authority".

In addition, the ongoing pressures on the budget are mainly attributed to the increasing and continuing demands within adult and children's care services.

The council has a legal obligation to fund these services, which have seen an unprecedented rise in both overall demand and complexity of need since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Elsewhere in Cumbria, the latest forecast overspend figure for Westmorland & Furness Council for this financial year is forecast to be £0.861 million, and for 2024/25 the latest revised budget gap figure is £5 million.

The budget gap for 2024/2025 was previously near £10 million and the predicted overspend this financial year was previously £324,000 based on the first quarter reports.

Last week Westmorland & Furness Council launched a consultation process to get residents’ views on a proposal to increase the council’s share of council tax by 2.99 per cent for next year and implement the Government’s two per cent rise for the Adult Social Care precept; this takes the total increase to 4.99 per cent the same percentage rise as that being recommended for Cumberland.

The council, despite challenging financial pressures, is committed to supporting people to have healthy lives, reduce inequality, drive delivery of carbon net zero, support its communities and enable sustainable economic growth.

The council must also secure a financially sustainable future and to do this must transform – so an ability to invest in future transformation will be essential.

If approved, this will help the council achieve a balanced budget, which is a legal requirement.

The consultation on its budget proposals which will run until January 19 and Cumberland's consultation will end on January 12.

Councillor Andrew Jarvis (Windermere and Ambleside, Lib Dems), Westmorland & Furness Council's cabinet member for finance, said: “As everyone knows it’s a tough financial climate out there and many people and families remain badly affected by the cost of living crisis.

"Like every household, and family, the council has also had to manage very high increases in many of its costs, such as materials and fuel.

“We have been working hard to balance the council’s budget in unprecedented financial times so that we can continue to support our residents and deliver our services.

"We also know that to be ready for the future we must continue to invest in transformation and new ways of working.

"We can’t do this alone and we recognise that by working together with our partners and communities we can make a difference, safeguarding essential services and driving forward positive change at a much quicker pace.

“Overall, considering the national picture, our budget is in reasonable shape but there are still many challenges and pressures.

"We are unlikely to receive the funding we really need from government. At the time of launching our consultation, we still have a £5 million gap, but this is manageable and we are working hard to reduce this so that by February 2024 we can agree a balanced budget, which is a legal requirement.

"We must also continue to transform services so we can realise savings as we move ahead and deliver on the benefits that can be achieved as a result of us being a unitary council.

“Our budget choices affect residents, the amount they pay and the services that they receive. That is why I am encouraging everyone, residents and partners alike, to have their say on this year’s budget consultation; so that we can shape our future together.”