Councillor Jane Scott, Leader of the Council, will give a brief overview of the Council’s current priorities. The Chairman will then invite questions from the public.
(Note: Written questions may be submitted in advance – please email to sharonl.smith@wiltshire.gov.uk by Wednesday 7 November 2012).
Minutes:
The Chairman welcomed the attending Cabinet Member and Leader of the Council, Cllr Jane Scott, to the meeting.
In addressing the Board the following information was provided:
· That Wiltshire Council had been running as a unitary authority for over 3 years. In 2007 when the decision to apply for unitary status was made the authority was unaware of the recession to come and the reduction in funding of 28%.
· As part of the savings required, back office costs had been reduced from 19% gross spend to just 9% with minimum affect on front line services such as children’s centres, leisure centres and libraries.
· Demographics show an increase and growing aging population, with Wiltshire growing faster than anywhere else in the South West. At the end of the financial year the authority would have invested £60m into adult social care services. Further funding cuts from central government and the likely increase in costs associated with an aging population would remain a challenge for the Council.
· A further priority for the Council was the economy. The council was working with businesses to encourage growth in the area. Approximately 2,000 jobs had been created over the last couple of years in the western corridor of Wiltshire. Wiltshire has amongst the lowest unemployment levels in the country.
· The authority was aware that limited broadband had an impact on businesses moving to the County. Investment in Superfast Broadband was taking place to achieve a 92% coverage. Work would continue on the remaining 8% to achieve a 100% coverage. The bidding process for the Councils partner in rolling out broadband had now been completed and would be announced shortly. A list of priority areas for roll-out would be announced to Area Boards early next year.
· To reduce fines attached to landfill the council had revised its waste collection service. As a result recycling figures had moved from approximately 27% to 48% and there was a continued drive to reach 50% by 2020.
· Investment into highways maintenance had been made year on year, this included reducing the back-log on remedial work with repairs being completed within approximately 3 to 5 days. The authority was aware of the damage heavy vehicles had in particular on country roads which were not originally designed for such heavy use. Although the authority did not have the power to stop them being used the issues on the A345 and A346 had been noted by the Highways team.
· Work continued to reduce the number of office buildings to 3 main hubs by the end of 2013. This would result in capital savings of £80m and a further £5m year on year in revenue costs.
· To bring community buildings closer together and ensure efficient running costs in the future, co-location of services in the form of community campuses to serve the current and future needs of residents were being developed.
· Once the Core Strategy for Wiltshire had been approved by the Inspectorate, Town and Parish councils would be able to develop Neighbourhood Plans to reflect how local communities would like to develop their local areas within the Strategy.
The Chairman thanked the Leader for the update.