Range of proposals to help save cash

South Lanarkshire Council has announced proposals to cut more than £10million from its budget.

The savings won’t be approved until the new year and will be dependent on the grant settlement received from central government.

If they get approved in time for the new financial year in April, what will actually get cut?

Here, we take a look at some of the services that would be affected.

COMMUNITY AND ENTERPRISE: ■ SLC have a fleet of more than 1400 vehicles – of which just 550 are painted in the council’s corporate blue. By no longer spray-painting vehicles blue and just sticking the council logo onto them, £20,000 can be saved.

■ In total, 103 pool cars are available for any council employee to use. Removing the dedicated post and redistributing the responsibility for valeting, readying cars for service and repair and sorting parking permits would save £26,000.

■The council have identified eight sites that they currently maintain which are owned by someone else. Charging the landowner for maintenance or stopping altogether would save the council £30,000.

■ Replacing grass cutters which collect cuttings with ones that just leave them in the grass could save £140,000 as a result of cuts to machinery costs and an increase in productivity. Of the 20 ride-on mowers, 16 would be replaced, with four retained for use in cemeteries. Four seasonal posts would no longer be needed.

■ Moving 24 janitorial staff working in schools to term-time contracts would save £190,000. That’s the equivalent of six full-time job losses, but the number of staff would remain the same.

SOUTH LANARKSHIRE LEISURE & CULTURE ■ More than £250,000 can be saved in staff costs by not filling current vacancies in town halls, libraries and other facilities across the region.

■Increasing Activage membership costs to £65 a year would generate £60,000. Activage is available to all residents over 60 and the increase would be equivalent to less than 14p a week.

EDUCATION: ■ Reducing the per pupil amount for classroom materials for three to 18-year-olds would save a total of £180,000.

■ Cuts to staff in secondary schools would save £465,000 annually however, only £310,000 would be cut from next year’s budget as the school year and financial year are different.

■ Increasing class sizes in primary one to 25 could save £680,000. This would see a reduction of classes in 13 schools, removing the need for 13 teachers, however the council say the pupil teacher ratio would be maintained by “ensuring that the reduction in posts are offset with necessary cover staff”.

HOUSING: ■ Renegotiation of the lease of Brandongate in Hamilton - which has already been approved - will save the council £128,000.