'Tough decisions' as Bury council faces £35m budget black hole

Town hall finance chiefs in Bury are warning that tough decisions will need to be made as they start the process to set a budget for 2025/26. The council has identified a massive budget shortfall of £35m for the three years up to 2028.

The authority say that potential savings of £9.4m already been identified and other measures will reduce the remaining gap to around £22m . However, the majority of the deficit will need to be found in the first year meaning further use of cash reserves or more cutbacks in services and jobs.

Coun Sean Thorpe, cabinet member for finance, said: “Once more, we are facing huge challenges in setting the budget for 2025/26. “This is being caused by insufficient funding, huge increases in costs, and an ever-increasing demand for services, particularly in adults’ and children’s social care, which together take up nearly three quarters of the council’s budget.

“Bury is in the bottom 20 per cent for council funding, and our spending power in real terms has been slashed over the past decade. “This has let us to find £150 million in savings over that period.

“As in previous years, we will have to use reserves to shore up the budget and keep services going, but you can only do this for so long. “Bury is not alone in this challenge – it’s a serious problem faced by councils across the country, who have been under-funded for more than a decade.

“The only long-term solution is a complete review of the way councils are funded, something that was promised years ago and which we and others have long called for.”

A report outlining the council’s finances is due to be considered at next Wednesday’s cabinet meeting. Subject to cabinet approval, public consultation on the budget proposals will take place between