West Berkshire Council says it has a £7.2m shortfall in its finances.

West Berkshire Council has welcomed the increased funding for schools and social care in the budget announced yesterday (Wednesday) – but says it has a £7.2m shortfall in its own finances.

The council says this could be delivered through reducing overheads, re-tendering contracts to deliver better value for money, holding posts vacant or removing vacant posts, and introducing new charges or increasing existing charges for some services.

It said the additional money offered by Chancellor Rachel Reeves for SEND provision should have a positive impact on its growing High Needs Block.

“Growth in the Household Support Fund will help our residents who are most in need, as will extensions to the schools breakfast club scheme,” said council leader Jeff Brooks (Lib Dem, Thatcham West).

“Assistance in funding to enable more early intervention should positively impact on the health and well-being of our children and reduce the numbers at risk of being taken in to care at vast cost to the taxpayer.

“More money for pothole repairs and for walking and cycling infrastructure is well received but we are disappointed in the increase in the bus fare cap.”

He said extra funding into housing, particularly affordable housing, is welcome.

“We would be very pleased to be able to recruit more planners but there is a shortage and the Budget announcement does not tell us how that will be addressed.

“We will await the devolution paper and see how we can work with neighbouring councils to drive efficiencies and savings as we have been doing for some years, but we would not wish to become bogged down in a protracted planning and implementation process involving local government re-organisation which leads to uncertainty and inertia.”

His comments came as West Berkshire Council launched a public consultation to give residents the opportunity to have their say on how to balance its 2025/26 budget.

The consultation is set to begin on Monday, November 11, and is subject to being approved by the executive when it meets next week (Thursday, November 7).

Local authority funding continues to be extremely challenging and West Berkshire Council is not alone in making difficult decisions to deliver a balanced budget.

When starting the budget-setting process the council was forecasting a deficit of £12.1m when considering its anticipated income against the cost of delivering services.

Around £3.3m savings have been found that don’t require consultation, and proposals which could deliver a financial benefit up to £1.2m which do. They include:

Consulting on the future of the council’s three resource centres.

Turning off streetlights in residential roads between 12am to 5am.

Reduction in the number of vehicles available for winter gritting.

A new scheme is also being proposed which, if approved, would see owners of Band G and H properties invited to donate to a charity led by West Berkshire Council to support local initiatives. This will be subject to a separate consultation.

Details about the proposals and how to respond will be available at: westberks.gov.uk/balancing-our-budget from Monday, November. 11

A further £7.2m still needs to be found.

Introducing the consultation, Mr Brooks said: “Every year we have to make increasingly difficult decisions about how to spend the money we receive.

“Higher costs and increasing demand mean our funding doesn’t go as far as it used to, and this can only be resolved in the long term by central Government.

“Together with the other Berkshire authorities we are continuing to lobby them to address an issue which is fast becoming a perilous one.

“In setting the budget for next year we remain committed to working with other organisations and residents to deliver services we can be proud of.

“We want to feel proud of West Berkshire and keep investing in the district’s infrastructure – and residents will see us continue to invest in leisure centres, schools and other projects important to current and future generations.”