Balancing the books will hit thousands of us
DURHAM County Council has signedoff on its budget for the year ahead.
Councillors on the cabinet agreed on a range of projects that’ll benefit from an extra £117 million capital investment programme.
Council tax will be on the rise and there will be new funding for highways maintenance
Over the next four years projects set to benefit from the capital programme include:
Investment of £19.1 million in highway maintenance up to 2019/20 in addition to the sum agreed for next year.
Funding of £750,000 for a new railway station at Horden.
It is hoped it will be open by 2020, bringing its total investment to £3m.
This will be matched from the New Stations Fund and the Local Enterprise Partnership.
Money is being provided for a new primary school in Bishop Auckland.
One million ppounds will be allocated to the Finance Durham Fund which will be used to support fledgling businesses across the county.
It brings the total investment up to £10m.
There will be extra revenue funding for a number of areas of social care in the next financial year:
£3.9m to support looked-after children
£1m to support special guardianship arrangements
there’ll be a £375,000 investment in the authority’s social work academy, and And, £4.8m for adult social care. Meanwhile. council tax will be on the rise, and there will be a 2.99% hike in council tax and an additional 2% increase to the adult social care precept.
This equates to a £1.38 a week rise for Band D properties and 92p a week for those who live in Band A.
Simon Henig, leader of Durham County Council, said: “We are continuing to invest in the future of County Durham by maintaining our focus on economic development, transport and schools.
“Our recent public consultation confirmed we continue to support the public’s priorities and we remain committed to providing high quality facilities to support communities across the county.”
He said the local authority is “working hard” to protect services prioritised by residents.
Recent public consultation confirmed we continue to support the public’s priorities