Answers demanded over £1.2m council overspend

Predicted overspend trebles just weeks after figures of £427,000 were presented to West Berkshire Council executive

WEST Berkshire Council has been accused of losing control of its finances following the publication of a report which shows a predicted £1.28 million overspend for the current financial year.

The announcement of a £427,000 first quarter overspend two weeks ago has been swiftly followed by a financial performance report due before the council's resource management select working group tonight (Tuesday) which highlights the extent to which the adult social care directorate is haemorrhaging money.

The three services predicted to come in over budget are children's services at £492,000, planning and countryside at £267,000, and adult social care, which is already predicted to come in around £968,000 over budget.

Despite requests from Newburytoday.co.uk no-one from the council's adult social care department or the Conservative group has been available for comment.

The Liberal Democrat leader Jeff Brooks (Thatcham West) is furious that the report is to be noted only and not discussed, and has accused the Conservatives of cutting off avenues of debate and scrutiny.

He said the absence of the portfolio holder Joe Mooney (Con, Birch Copse) was not helping at a time when the department was clearly struggling to manage it's finances.

“Serious questions need to be asked of the adult social care portfolio,” he said.

“Joe Mooney has not been at the last few meetings, they won't let us discuss it. Have they lost control of that department?”

West Berkshire Council said Mr Mooney is currently away.

Last year West Berkshire Council attempted to address the issue of the spiralling adult social care by closing five day centres and axing staff before introducing personal budgets to vulnerable residents to pay for their own care.

West Berkshire Labour party spokesman Richard Garvie said the move to personal budgets could have played a part in the overspend.

“The council decided to axe five of the nine day centres earlier this year, and a lot of users of those centres now qualify for a personal budget. The council need to come clean about how much this has contributed to the overspend," he said.

“Who is accountable? Those are the questions that the Conservative administration must answer, as yet again there appears to be little or no control over the Adult Social Care budget that happens to massively overspend each year with no consequence for anyone. It just isn't good enough.”

Last year the adult social care service had the largest overspend of any council service once again as it came in £1.6 million over-budget.