Council transformation and savings plan

Councils across the country are facing ongoing challenges, such as cuts in funding and rising demands for services.

We need to make savings to continue to balance the books, but there are also opportunities to change how we work to deliver improved services for residents and staff.

Our savings plan as well as some of the transformation and change programmes focus on:

• delivering the savings we need
• new ways of working
• organising and prioritising our resources differently

How much we need to save

Funding from central government has been going down and cost pressures have been increasing. This comes at a time when demographic changes (particularly the growing numbers of older people in our population) have led to big spikes in demand for support, especially for services such as adult social care and support for the most vulnerable children and young people.

To make sure we can continue to deliver value for money services and prioritise support for the most vulnerable in South Gloucestershire, we need to consider ways to:

• reduce future demand
• deliver services most cost-effectively
• find additional ways to generate income

We are also aware of the ongoing effect of change, the uncertainty this can bring, and the pressure on staff being asked to do more for less. Therefore, the proposals have a major theme around processes being designed to generate additional income.

Savings are being delivered through a number of programmes and projects, including the Council Transformation and Change Programme (CTSP), as well as through improved use of digital technology.