Brighton and Hove City Council is currently on track to overspend its budget by £7 million, down from a £10 million forecast made in July. At a cabinet meeting members were told how the council was trying to rein in the forecast overspend by the end of the 2024-25 financial year next March. The overspend relates to the council’s “general fund” which pays for essential council services.
But the council faces further financial pressure, with the “dedicated schools grant”, which comes from the government to fund “maintained schools”, falling short of budget predictions. The schools budget is currently expected to have a £1.4 million deficit.
READ MORE: Brighton and Hove City Council staff facing redundancy Some 34 schools have “licensed deficits” totalling £7.1 million, compared with an expected overspend of £6.6 million, resulting in more pressure on the council’s general fund.
And services provided jointly with the NHS are at risk of an overspend of about £1.2 million. The demand for adult social care continues to increase, with more people receiving support on being discharged from hospital.
Councillors were told that £10 million was being spent on the increased costs linked to complex care. The council is trying to make savings totalling £23.6 million but a fifth of the planned total – about £4.
6 million – is also potentially “at risk”. The budget for temporary housing is forecast to overspend by £2.4 million, attributed to a 12 per cent.