Cuts to school budgets, voluntary groups and highways funding could all be reversed in Caerphilly County Borough, with a council tax rise of nearly 7% also lowered significantly, the leader of the council has indicated.
It comes after the council received a better settlement from the Welsh Government than was expected, with a 4.1% increase in funding, and feedback from a public consultation on the budget plans.
Changes which could be made include lowering a proposed 6.95% council tax rise to 4.7%.
Slashing the budgets of voluntary groups – Citizens Advice Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent, Gwent Association of Voluntary Organisations (GAVO) and the Groundwork Trust – by 40% could be deferred.
Other changes include protecting school budgets, which were going to be cut by 2%, reversing a reduction in CCTV cameras and a reduction in the highway maintenance budget.
School crossing patrol sites were going to be reduced from 55 to 22, but it is now indicated that no cuts will be made.
A proposed increase in school meal prices also looks set to be abandoned.
Cllr Philippa Marsden, leader of the council, said she is “keen to demonstrate that we will respond positively to feedback received from our residents.”
“These proposed changes to the original list of savings are still being finalised, but I wanted to give everyone an early indication of the sort of positive steps we are considering,” she said.
“The improved financial settlement from Welsh Government has allowed us to reconsider our position, but there are challenges ahead so we will still be looking to make savings in advance wherever possible – particularly in areas that have no impact on the public or on frontline service delivery.”
Cllr Jamie Pritchard, chair of the council’s Policy and Resources Scrutiny Committee, said: “The cross-party scrutiny committee made two recommendations for cabinet to reconsider. These were cuts to the voluntary sector and to reduce the proposed increase to Meals on Wheels.
“The leader has agreed to both, and gone further by freezing the price of Meals on Wheels. The views of the scrutiny committee have been respected, which I welcome.”
Cllr Colin Mann, leader of the council’s Plaid Cymru group, said he was pleased some of the plans were being reconsidered, but added he was ‘amazed’ some of the proposals were put forward in the first place.
“It’s a case of retracting some of the proposals that we think should never have been made in the first place,” he said.
“Things like taking money off the voluntary sector, none of it made sense.”
Cllr Kevin Etheridge, leader of the Independent group, welcomed “any positivity”, but said he believes a 4.7% council tax rise is “still too high” given the improved settlement.
More details will be announced in the coming weeks before the council’s cabinet finalises budgets plans in February.