Children services, residential care, disability and dementia support are all in line for budget reductions as Dudley Council seeks to save £4.6 million next year.

Councillors at the borough’s Corporate Scrutiny Committee will meet tomorrow night (Thursday) to discuss the savings which are being put forward as part of a medium term financial plan covering the next three years.

The plans do not include figures for job losses but do reveal the authority has put aside half-a-million pounds for redundancy costs.

Dudley Council House.
Dudley Council House.

The council has already agreed to a 4.49 per cent hike in council tax from April next year which will mean a £65 hike for band D households before additional charges by the police and fire authorities are included.

The savings are in addition to that increase and are expected to reduce the council’s spending to £238.4 million during 2018-19.

They included changes to Tipton Road Children’s home which will now offer services to children with complex need alongside youngsters with disabilities, saving £468,000 a year.

The plans also suggest changes to home and peripatetic care which council officers predicted will save £212,000 over the next 12 months, while changes in business support development will amount to £100,000.

Other savings include changes to children’s transport which is hoped will reduce budgets by £381,000 plus switching back room departments such as emergency planning, and parts of environmental health and trading standards to public health budgets, clawing back £425,000.

In addition, the plan recommends using over £7 million of council reserves to support services.