£91,000 left in Council kitty

Draft accounts show council ended year with a surplus as officials point to ‘challenging’ future ahead of Rachel Reeves’ spending review

Draft accounts produced by Telford & Wrekin Council show that the authority ended the last financial year in the black by £91,457.

Even though the authority overspent its £157,295,840 revenue budget by £290,464 it brought in £381,921 more in funding, meaning it ended the year with an in-the-black figure of more than £91,000.

The Draft Statement of Accounts is yet to be finally signed off by the council’s cabinet and full council but it passed muster at a recent meeting of the audit committee.

Across the border in Shropshire, figures show that during the last financial year it ended 2024/25 some £34m over budget and eating up much of its rainy-day reserves.

In this new financial year Telford & Wrekin Council has set itself a target of making £13.1 million of ‘further savings’, on top of £181.7m since 2009/10.

That is before any announcements that the Government makes next Wednesday, June 11 in Rachel Reeves’ highly anticipated spending review, which could have an impact on local government finances.

PA News has quoted Ms Reeves saying that: “Not every department will get everything that they want next week and I have had to say no to things that I want to do too.”

Telford & Wrekin Council officials say that all councils “continue to face extreme challenges with unprecedented pressures fuelled by high inflation and high demand for services – particularly Adult Social Care, Children’s Safeguarding and School Travel.”

But they add that despite the pressures they ended the year “within budget”, which they say is a “clear demonstration of the exceptionally strong financial management and financial resilience which is embedded in the authority.”

The council officers say that in addition to general and special balances they have a general contingency buffer of £7.2m in 2025/26 and £5.9m held centrally for inflation and staff pay awards in 2025/26.

It also has an “uncommitted balance of £21.7m held in the Budget Strategy Reserve.” That level of reserves is considered to be ‘prudent’.

Officers in their report to councillors said they have a “solid basis upon which to move into 2025/26 and demonstrates ongoing financial resilience.”

But demand pressures in social care are continuing to grow and they say the “funding outlook for the medium term remains very uncertain but will clearly continue to be challenging.”

During this financial year the council started off the year with a total net revenue budget of £167million.

The council also has “ready access” to borrowing from the money markets and the Public Works Loans Board (PWLB), which lends to local authorities at competitive rates.

Local Tory opposition politicians have leveled criticism at the Labour administration over the level of ‘indebtedness’ at the authority, currently some £385.5 million.

This huge figure is an increase of £54.2m from the previous year driven by an increase in borrowing.

Labour’s leadership team have rejected Conservative criticism and said that they are investing in multi year projects that generate an income, such as Nuplace, its wholly owned housing company, which brings in income from rents.