North Yorkshire council's domestic abuse fund remains unspent

Councillors said the unspent money could be accessed if needed in the next financial year

North Yorkshire County Council insisted it had the financial resources to support domestic abuse victims, after it emerged it had yet to spend £450,000 of allocated government funding.

Opposition members said the unspent government funding should be carried over to next year's budget.

Senior Conservative councillors said £750,000 had already been set aside in the budget for domestic abuse services.

It came as members approved a 4.99% rise in council tax.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Labour councillor Liz Colling told fellow members the number of domestic abuse incidents reported to North Yorkshire Police had risen from 7,825 to 8,652 in 2021.

The councillor, who represents Falsgrave and Stepney, said 25% of domestic abuse victims were male and the cost of living crisis would make the situation worse.

"I think it is time we invested in this service, we should be doing preventative work, tackling misogyny and gender-based violence in our schools and colleges and additional much-needed facilities," she said.

'The money will be used if needed'

Supporting the call for the unspent funding to be carried forward, opposition councillors pointed out how a new refuge in Scarborough had been put on hold due to rising costs.

However, executive member for stronger communities, David Chance, said £750,000 had been set aside for such services in the coming year, alongside a £100,000 contingency.

Referring to the unspent money, he added: "I can assure you if we need the money, we will use the money."

The authority's deputy leader, Councillor Gareth Dadd, said removing the £450,000 from the 2023/24 budget would help maintain all services for vulnerable people, including domestic abuse survivors.

He said one of the reasons the funding had not been spent was that the government said it must not be used for building-type projects.

"We will probably end up, in reality, side-shifting this funding pot into general balances and then taking a decision," Mr Dadd added.