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Councillor Stewart Stacey

Planning Birmingham’s Future and Budget Consultation

Budget Consultation 2014-15• The financial position facing the council• Service Reviews• Outcomes of the service reviews• Some key proposals• Summary of the proposed budget• Proposed new savings• District services• Standing up for Birmingham• Working together BCC and the VCS• Comments and questions – plus other ways to give us your

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The Financial Position

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2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18

Pressures Grant reductions

£839m

• Combined grant cuts and spending pressures of £840m 2010-2018

• Grant cuts are over a third of the budget we can decide how to spend

• £375m savings so far

• £465m still to come

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The Service Reviews

• To manage the cuts sensibly and with the least possible damage we needed a longer term plan

• A comprehensive service review process was undertaken and green papers published

• Needed to think about what the council does in a new way

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Outcomes of the Service Reviews• White Paper – Planning Birminghams future

and budget consultation 2014- 15 published– Summarises ideas from the green papers – Sets out a longer term plan for change– Budget proposals also in White Paper (Appendix 2)– Details in fact sheets

• At www.birmingham.gov.uk/budgetviews

Three big themes…5

Theme 1 - Working more efficiently

Reducing waste and getting more use out of what we have – through • Clearer priorities• Better use of technology • Using fewer buildings

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Theme 2 - Working with others• Using different service providers and sources

of funding, including voluntary and community organisations and social enterprises as well as the private sector

• Forming new partnerships with other organisations, pooling money and making decisions together

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Theme 3 - Working differently• Joining up services: e.g one building for all services

• Reducing need: this includes limiting who is entitled to use a service/charging money for it/responding earlier to prevent costly problems

• Working with communities to help people to look after their own needs more

Where at all possible, we need to protect the most vulnerable service users and the areas of

Birmingham with greatest need

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But we still need to set a budget Some Key Proposals

• Additional £9.2m for children’s social care• Transformation of sport and physical activity

services – including £36m capital invested in six new-build pools and other facilities

• Reduction in support services costs – £20m from Service Birmingham (our biggest single cut)

• No closing down of services in 2014-159

Summary of the Proposed Budget

LTFP at February 2013 £111.2mBudget gap 2014-15 £125.3mAdjustments -£36.9m

Specific cuts to services £88.4m(£1.2m existing plans, £87.2m new)

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Proposed New SavingsService Review Theme Saving

Adults Social Care £14.355mSafeguarding, Supporting and Educating Young People £13.354mDeveloping a Successful and Inclusive Economy £5.980mDeveloping Successful and Inclusive Communities £14.125mSafe, Clean and Green Neighbourhoods £6.000mSupport Services £32.600mA Well Managed and Resilient City £0.820mTotal £87.234m

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District Services• District Committees are responsible for a range

of local services• District budgets are being reallocated on a

deprivation index basis, to better reflect local needs

• Each District is proposing savings within city-wide guidelines and priorities

• Detailed proposals will be consulted on locally in the New Year

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Standing up for Birmingham #su4brum

Our campaign calls for people, organisations andbusinesses to:• Unite as a city in response to the cuts and support

our demand that the government make the reforms needed to sustain our services

• Contribute to local services and neighbourhoods – we welcome your contribution and your ideas for doing things differently

• Work with council staff and others to help maintain services at this difficult time

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Standing up for Birmingham Next steps

• Districts will make contact with local groups and voluntary organisations • A new enquiry point for those wishing to register an asset of community value or seeking

support for any other initiative • Mobilising community networks such as neighbourhood forums through a range of virtual and

real community events • Gather good ideas and good practice from around the country and communicate it widely to

enable people to be inspired by things happening elsewhere • Develop materials, such as a prospectus of opportunities and a detailed toolkit, and engage

mentors.• Review regulations and red tape that cause difficulties for community and voluntary

organisations trying to make a difference in their community.• Develop new ways of building collaboration between public services and voluntary and

community groups across the city – building on the work already done in the Fair Brum social inclusion process and by many other organisations.

• Re-launch our staff volunteering scheme and encourage City Council staff to participate in time banking.

• Support efforts to build awareness of the time banking schemes already operating in the city and encourage new ones. 14

Working together – BCC and the Voluntary and Community Sector

1. We recognise the value of the VCS and are seeking to develop even more of a partnership approach to make best use of all resources in Birmingham.

2. We know Supporting People is particularly important to the sector and hope to run the procurement exercise in a way which:• Welcomes providers who want to form collaboratives to bid for SP

work.• Values "social value" as much as "price" in the tender evaluation • Recognises providers' innovative social value added, as well as the

base SP contractual specification social value.• Applies the Living Wage to all SP providers.

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This AfternoonThematic workshops to discuss the questions below

Which proposals will most affect a) the people you support and b) your organisation? In what ways?

Do you have any suggestions about how the council and your organisation (or others) can work together to run our public services better in the future and to minimise any negative impact of cuts the council has to make?

Do you have any other ideas about running services in a different way?

Council staff will take notes to make sure your views are included in the consultation

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Give your views or ask questionsComplete an online survey at www.birminghambeheard.co.uk

By email to: budget.views@birmingham.gov.ukBy SMS by texting “budget” followed by a space and your

message to 07786 200 403By post to: Budget Views, Room 221, The Council House,

Birmingham B1 1BB

By 10 January 2014

Download the White Paper, summary and fact sheets from www.birmingham.gov.uk/budgetviews

* clarification - this is the corporate consultation – there will be service specific consultation taking place too which has a longer

timescale and will close after 10th January.17