What is happening in your area?
- Published
As councils around Wales try to balance the books for 2014/15 after a reduction in their funding, how is your local authority planning to cope with less money? Here is a brief overview of some of the steps being taken.
ANGLESEY
4.5% rise in council tax
Cuts of £7m over the next year
Accepting 45 voluntary redundancies
BLAENAU GWENT
4.6% rise in council tax
Cuts of £10m of in next year's budget
Cutting £500,000 from grounds maintenance budget, possibly shedding 12 jobs and giving up three vehicles
Reviewing meals-on-wheels service and possibly cutting jobs
Seeking help from the community to retain some services which could close otherwise
BRIDGEND
4.98% rise in council tax
Cuts of £36m over the next four years, £13m in the next year alone
Over £6m in savings over next year to come from "internal efficiencies"
Staff pay across the council is frozen for the coming financial year, except for a 1% rise for some of the lowest paid
Councillors are also being asked to give up any rise in their allowances
CAERPHILLY
Caerphilly council must cut its budget by £14.53m this year, and more than £28m during the next three years
Proposals which include increasing paperwork charges and reducing the frequency of grass cutting in civic areas
3.9% council tax increase
CARDIFF
3.97% increase in council tax
£50m cut from budget in 2014/15
A further £92m needs to be cut over the next three years
700 full-time jobs expected to go
Charges for meals on wheels increase by 70p to £3.50
Some council employees face a cut of one hour in the working week
CARMARTHENSHIRE
Carmarthenshire council needs to save £12m in the next financial year and £31m over the next three years
It is increasing council tax by 4.77%
Cuts to street cleaning services
Increase to car park charges
Increasing the cost of home care services for older people
CEREDIGION
Ceredigion needs to save £9.6m in the next financial year and £20.85m over the next three years.
It has agreed a 4.41% council tax rise
It plans to save money by increasing charges for meals at home for the elderly from £3.50 to £5 and closing a day centre in Aberaeron
They are also set to reduce the number of mobile libraries from five to four and replacing libraries at New Quay and Tregaron with a mobile one to save the local authority £146,000
CONWY
Conwy needs to save £12.7m in the next financial year and £29.4m over the next three years
It has agreed to increase council tax by 5%
In a report last year, Conwy council said it faced an "extremely challenging financial landscape"
It said it faced a 3.6% funding cut in its next full-year finances and even with the 5% council tax rise, would still face a £5m shortfall each year until 2017
DENBIGHSHIRE
Denbighshire council needs to save £8.5m in the next financial year and £20.5m over the next three years
3.5% rise in council tax
Leisure facilities funding to be cut
Schools reorganisation
Cuts to the number of cars in its fleet
Management restructuring in some departments
FLINTSHIRE
The council is looking to save £15.5m in the next financial year
Council tax rise of 3%
Remodelling council services
Streamlining management
Reducing the size of its workforce
GWYNEDD
Council tax rise of 3.9%
Gwynedd faces funding gap of around £12m for 2014/15 and £34m over the next four years
Councillor Peredur Jenkins, Gwynedd council cabinet member for resources, said: "Our priority now over the coming months will be to consult with residents so that we can deliver the necessary savings from those service areas that will have the least impact on residents and more vulnerable people in particular."
MERTHYR TYDFIL
Council tax will increase by 3.95%
The council needs to save £15.3m over four years
The budget plans include closing an elderly people's centre and reducing library opening hours
Councillors have deferred a decision on controversial proposals to scrap free transport for sixth-form pupils
The plan to remove post-16 free home-to-school and free home-to-college transport had been condemned by parents and pupils at Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun who claimed it would undermine Welsh-medium education
Scrapping the post-16 transport would have saved £115,000 per year but there will now be a period of further consultation before any action is taken
MONMOUTHSHIRE
Council tax is to rise 3.95%
The council needs to save £9m in 2014/15 and £20m over the next few years
The council said unlike most others, it was "not closing things"
Examples of savings including dimming and turning off some street lights, staff restructuring and increasing revenue in leisure centres
NEATH PORT TALBOT
Council tax increase of 4.5%
Need to identify savings for 2014-15 of £17.3m and about £38m over the next four years
The council said the level of savings was "unprecedented and has required significant changes to services"
Money-saving measures include selective increases in fees and charges for some services, improved efficiency and elimination of waste
NEWPORT
Council tax rise is 4.5%
Authority needs to save £10m in 2014/15 and £25m over next four years
Plans to save money include reducing staffing costs, looking into handing over the running of The Riverfront theatre to an external body and closing a respite centre for adults with learning disabilities
PEMBROKESHIRE
£20m savings needed
The biggest saving of £12.9m must be made in 2014/15 although the authority has pledged to protect school budgets
Increase of 3.4% council tax
Plans to close seven public toilets
POWYS
Need to save £20m in 2014/15
Increase of 4.5% in council tax
Scrap meals on wheels
Cuts in funding to Citizens Advice Bureau
Reduction in public transport funding
RHONDDA CYNON TAF
Cuts of £70m over four years
Increase of 4.5% in council tax
Delay children starting full-time school until age four
Proposals to close three leisure centres
14 libraries will shut
Reduction to meals-on-wheels service
SWANSEA
Need to save £26m in 2014/15 and £45 over the next few years
Council tax increase of 5%
Plans for a staff restructure and reducing the number of agency staff used
TORFAEN
Need to save £11.2m in 2014/15
Council tax rise of 3.95%
Scrapped mobile library service
Outsourced maintenance of sports pitches
Not fill its vacant deputy chief executive post
VALE OF GLAMORGAN
Has a £25.7m funding gap
Plans a number of joint working opportunities with neighbouring authorities and health boards including establishing jointly funded posts
Has had to raise council tax by 4.5%
Price of school meals to be increased
Energy savings on street lighting
Increase in wedding and civil partnership fees
Adult day services to be modernised with some buildings to be sold off
Library budgets to be cut
Music tuition fund for schools to be cut
WREXHAM
Wrexham council needs to save nearly £14m this year and £45m over five years
It has agreed a council tax increase of 3%, and plans to save money by closing some community centres, libraries and the Plas Madoc leisure centre and Waterworld - which have led to protest
Plas Madoc is set to close by the end of April
The council's executive board meet on 11 March to decide if the time for interested parties to consider taking the venue over as a social enterprise should be extended from June to October
- Published10 March 2014