Council needs to raise £600m by selling assets
Struggling borough needs to tackle spiralling borrowing costs
The extent of Slough Borough Council’s financial crisis has been further exposed with the local authority admitting it needs to sell £600million of assets to ease its cash woes.
The Labour-run council revealed the seriousness of its financial position in July by issuing a Section 114 notice, banning all non-essential expenditure.
This followed two damning external audit reports in May, released days after the local elections, which criticised financial governance at the council and raised concerns over its dwindling cash reserves.
On Monday, chief finance officer Steven Mair told a cabinet meeting the local authority will need to sell half of its £1.2billion worth of assets to tackle spiralling borrowing costs which currently stand at £750 million.
Council-owned land and buildings will need to be sold to pay off the local authority’s debts but Mr
Mair said there will be no ‘fire sale’.
Mr Mair also informed members of the council’s overview and scrutiny panel last week that revenue reserves are now ‘essentially nil’.
Cost-cutting measures will take place in adult social care through the closure of council-run day centres for people with learning disabilities and autism.
The council said these services can be run at a lower cost by external providers such as private operators and charities.
Council leader James Swindlehurst also insisted the plans had been in place since the announcement of its 2021/22 budget and were not in response to the local authority’s cash crisis.
But people who use the day centres have hit out at the decision and concerns have been raised over the lengths people will have to travel to access support.