We want to continue to invest in services that matter most to our residents. But with reducing budgets, rising costs and increasing demand, we need to do things differently and more efficiently while saving £143 million by 2028/29.
We want to hear residents’ views on:
where we can save money
where we’re doing well
where we need to improve.
Your feedback and suggestions will help us to develop proposals to balance our budget. They’ll also help Councillors understand your needs and priorities when they make decisions about how to spend the city’s budget.
How to get involved
You can fill in our online budget survey or come along to any of our drop-in sessions around the city. You don’t need to book and can come any time between 10am and 1pm.
Tuesday 7 May 10am to 1pm – Morningside Library, 178-182 Morningside Road, Morningside, EH10 4PU
Tuesday 14 May 10am to 1pm – McDonald Road Library, 2-8 McDonald Road, EH7 4LU
Tuesday 21 May 10am to 1pm – South East Locality, 40 Captain’s Road, EH17 8QF
Tuesday 28 May 10am to 1pm – Fountainbridge Library, 137 Dundee Street, EH11 1BG
Tuesday 4 June 10am to 1pm – South Queensferry, 9 Shore Road, South Queensferry, EH30 9RD
Tuesday 11 June 10am to 1pm – North East Hub, 101 Niddrie Mains Road, EH16 4DS
Tuesday 18 June 10am to 1pm – North West Locality, 8 Pilton Gardens, EH4 4DP
Tuesday 25 June 10am to 1pm – South West Locality, Westside Plaza, EH14 2ST
Following a special meeting yesterday (Friday 9th February) Council Leaders are seeking an urgent further meeting with the Deputy First Minister in relation to the Budget settlement for Scottish Local Government, highlighting the dire consequences of the Government’s current spending plans on communities throughout Scotland.
Commenting following the meeting the COSLA Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann said: “Leaders were clear today that an urgent meeting with the Deputy First Minister is a priority.
“Leaders expressed anger at the Budget setting timetable which has left Councils unable to set their budgets due to a lack of certainty from Scottish Government and as a result of having to wait until UK Government Spring Statement before knowing what additional funding could be passed on.
“In addition, there was a clear direction from Leaders to seek restoration of the £63m cut to the core Local Government budget on behalf of their communities and the essential services they rely on at the meeting with the DFM.
“Leaders also agreedthat the council tax freeze should be on a voluntary basis with agreement that the £147m, already earmarked by Scottish Government for this purpose, is distributed to all Councils with flexibility to raise Council Tax by up to 5%. There should also be no penalty or reduction in funding in line with the principles of the Verity House Agreement.
“Leaders were clear that Councils should be given full flexibility of funding to deploy within Schools, and the wider community, to provide the right support for the diverse needs of children and young people across Scotland, therefore recognising that a wide range of people who contribute to a child’s education.
“Finally, Leaders agreed to seek a guarantee that the £45m Barnett consequentials resulting from the UK Government’s recent announcement will be passed in full to councils, also in accordance with the Verity House Agreement so it can be used to address local priorities.”
Scotland’s councils are managing their money effectively, increasing reserves, with longer-term financial plans in place. Whilst no council was at immediate financial risk in 2022/23, there is no certainty this will continue, according to spending watchdog Accounts Commission’s latest financial report.
This makes an agreement between the Scottish Government and councils to secure a sustainable, longer-term funding arrangement to deliver local services all the more urgent.
Effective financial management within councils is crucial as budget gaps increase. Councils continue to rely on savings and reserves to balance budgets. Over half of councils used financial flexibilities in 2022/23. This helps with immediate budget pressures but defers costs to later years and fails to tackle underlying challenges to financial sustainability.
The Accounts Commission’s latest report assesses the financial position of Scotland’s councils during 2022/23 and the outlook for services beyond this.
While councils received more funding and income in cash terms in 2022/23, high inflation means this fell by nearly three per cent in real terms compared to the previous year.
A significant and increasing amount of funding continued to be either formally ringfenced or directed towards specific services and national policy objectives – reducing councils’ flexibility in using money to meet local needs.
Despite more core funding from the Scottish Government for 2023/24, there was a significant increase in councils’ total funding gap, due to pressures including increased demand for services, inflation and the cost-of-living.
Capital budgets were also significantly strained, risking knock-on impacts on the maintenance of key public buildings and infrastructure, for example schools, libraries and roads.
Councils recognise the risks ahead, but they need to innovate at pace and make difficult decisions about cuts to services to remain financially sustainable. Some councils have experienced opposition from within their communities when seeking to reduce services to balance budgets. This reinforces the need for frank consultation and engagement with communities when planning change.
Ronnie Hinds, Interim Chair of the Accounts Commission said: “There is intensifying pressures on council finances and services. Given the funding position for councils, there is increasing reliance on reserves and savings to deliver balanced budgets.
“This means councils are already making difficult decisions about future service delivery and the level of service they can afford. Having leadership and a workforce with the right skills will be crucial to deliver on this.
“Local government is the second largest area of Scottish Government spending, but despite rising demand for services, the proportion of funding to councils has reduced over the last decade.
“Urgent progress is needed to agree a funding framework between Scottish and Local Government. This will bring much-needed clarity and certainty of budgets for future years.”
The Accounts Commission’s Local Government in Scotland Financial bulletin for 2022/23 published today (Tuesday) reinforces COSLA’s warnings over the perilous state of Council finances over the last few years.
Commenting, COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann said: “The Accounts Commission’s Local Government in Scotland Financial bulletin for 2022/23, published today, reinforces what we have been saying about council finances and the really difficult and challenging decisions Councils have had to take in recent years.
“It is vitally important that these concerns, which have been consistently raised by COSLA, are now being backed up by hard facts and evidence presented by the Accounts Commission.
“There is widespread agreement from COSLA on the Accounts Commission’s key messages on the scale and financial challenge facing Scotland’s Councils, as well as the most pressing issues facing councils now.
“Some of these key messages, whilst extremely stark, come as no great surprise to those of us in Local Government:
In 2022/23 total revenue funding from all sources fell by £619 million (2.8 per cent) in real terms to £21.3 billion compared to 2021/22.
An increasing proportion of funding is ring-fenced or provided with the expectation it will be spent on specific services.
There is pressure on capital budgets, and this presents risks to the viability of local government capital programmes, many of which impact on key services (e.g., the construction and maintenance of schools, libraries, roads).
Councils are increasingly having to rely on savings and reserves as well as making increasingly difficult decisions to reduce or stop services to help balance budgets.
“Today’s Accounts Commission Bulletin is a true reflection of where we are now. Our reality right now is extremely challenging – years of real-terms cuts to council budgets have been coupled with increasing additional policy commitments and increased ring-fencing. With so much funding still directed, the ability to take local decisions on most of our Budget is almost impossible.
Councillor Hagmann concluded: “The picture painted by the Accounts Commission illustrates why COSLA is lobbying hard on the detrimental impact to communities of the Draft Scottish Government Budget, currently going through the Parliamentary process.
“The trends highlighted by the Bulletin are why Scotland’s Council Leaders are so disappointed and furthermore highlights the need to progress the ambitions of our joint Scottish Government and Local Government Verity House agreement. We must seek a solution to these long-term issues in order to protect the essential front-line service of our communities.
“COSLA’s President, Vice President and Political Group Leaders, from all parties have written to the Deputy First Minister requesting that a meaningful negotiation takes place, to protect those who rely on essential services, support our local economies and continue to progress our net zero national ambitions.”
£144 million does not fully fund a council tax freeze, COSLA Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann has explained.
Ms Hagmann said: “Disappointingly the Scottish Budget has not provided our local authorities with a fully funded council tax freeze as expected.
“The Scottish Government has set aside £144m stating this will ‘fully fund’ a council tax freeze – this would only provide the income equivalent to a 5% rise.
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“However, Local Government’s core revenue budget was cut by £63m from the outset, essentially leaving just £81m compensation for a council tax freeze. As a result, Local Government is faced with the reality that the funding offered for a council tax freeze only equates to a 2.8% rise.
“This significantly adds to the pressures faced by councils – a recent LGIU survey found that 83% of Scottish councils were looking at a minimum increase of 5%.”
COSLA Vice President Councillor Steven Heddle has sent a strong warning to the Scottish Government that any Council Tax Freeze must be fully funded.
COSLA’s message is a response to comments made to the media by Deputy First Minister Shona Robison on Sunday.
Councillor Heddle said: “There were a few things in the comments made by the Deputy First Minister yesterday (Sunday) that I am uncomfortable with on behalf of COSLA, our member councils and the communities that we represent.
“Firstly, the Deputy First Minister cannot decide or unilaterally say that the ‘Council Tax freeze to stay’- it’s up to 32 individual council to decide if they have a council tax freeze or not, not her government.
“Secondly, unless it is funded with additional money for each council that allows them to fund their planned Council Tax increases, then it is not fully funded, and it will be our service users who will suffer as a consequence.
“The funding for the freeze needs to be transparently additional and consolidated into our Budgets for future years.”
“The DFM also mentioned the ‘Changing shape of public sector workforce’. Local Government’s workforce has already changed shape drastically. Between 2006 and 2018, the Local Government workforce reduced by 15% (35,000 FTE) before Scottish Government policies such as Early Learning and Childcare added staff back in from 2019.
“The Scottish Government workforce has nearly doubled since 2006; staffing in non-departmental bodies has also doubled and in Scottish Government agencies, staffing has grown by 15%. These increases have added more than 7,000 FTE staff in just over 15 years.
“The Verity House Agreement was designed to ensure positive working between Scottish Local Government and The Scottish Government, and a focus on better outcomes and person-centred services.
“The VHA has three priorities – to tackle poverty, particularly child poverty; to transform our economy through a just transition to deliver net zero, recognising climate change as one of the biggest threats to communities across Scotland; and deliver sustainable person-centred public services.
Local Government will be unable to contribute to these if underfunded.
“COSLA knows that Scottish Government is under pressure financially around this Budget. However, the Council Tax freeze came out of the blue and has serious financial implications.
“And any suggestions that Local Government’s workforce needs cut further will have serious consequences for communities.”
‘Early grip’ of budget to ensure best value for residents
The City of Edinburgh Council has begun budget setting early in an extra effort to ‘futureproof the services which matter most to residents and deliver them more efficiently’.
A report published this week outlines high level proposals for how the council will ‘innovate to lower costs and provide best value for the people of Edinburgh’ when it sets its next budget.
As it is developed further, the Financial Strategy and Medium-Term Financial Plan will provide a forward look and action plan to address the city’s longer-term financial challenge – while staying true to Edinburgh’s core values, priorities, and commitments made in the council’s business plan.
With a focus on improving services where possible rather than reducing them, the initial proposals are based on:
An assumed Council Tax rise of at least 3 per cent;
A programme of internal change involving a new system to better support HR activities;
More efficient use of Community Transport;
Exploring new income and trading opportunities;
Making the best use of the council’s estate so that it has fewer but better buildings;
Managing contracts and partnerships more efficiently and at lower cost;
Driving down costs by embracing digital solutions.
This early planning comes just a few months after Councillors controversially agreed a Lib-Dem budget for 2023/24 set against a backdrop of real-terms reductions in core government grant funding.
Councillor Mandy Watt, Finance and Resources Convener, said:We’re proud of our commitment to making Edinburgh a greener and fairer city, and to getting the basics right. And we’re equally proud of our track record of strong financial management. This strategic approach prepares us for the challenges that we’ll face over the coming years.
“The work we do now will pave the way for protecting and enhancing our investment in Edinburgh’s future, which we’ve committed to in the council’s Business Plan. We need to make this investment, whilst also prioritising the day-to-day services residents say matter most to them right now.
“Local authorities have suffered a decade of continuous real term income cuts from central government and Edinburgh is no exception. In fact, Edinburgh remains the lowest funded council per head in Scotland, despite the unique pressures which come with being Scotland’s capital city – our projected population growth, the climate crisis, and our well documented housing shortage.
“The Scottish Government could do more to support Edinburgh. Fast tracking the Transient Visitor Levy, and allowing councils to decide what to use the income for, would make a huge difference to our finances.
“I know that financial planning can cause concerns, particularly amongst our workers, so I want to make it absolutely clear that I remain committed to the council’s longstanding approach to no-compulsory redundancies.
“A further report re-affirming this will be brought to a meeting of the Policy and Sustainability Committee in August and we will continue to engage with Trade Unions throughout the ongoing budget process.”
A trial community contact project is running in Gorgie Dalry to make it easier for local people to reach the services and support that the Council offers.
Citizen Space at Tynecastle Community Wing is a test site that enables residents to access Council services in a convenient local setting.
The new trial team has been specially trained to help people there and then with Council services like ordering a new wheelie bin or informing of problems with local street lights. They can also link residents to the right community groups and other places they can get support.
If people would like help and advice with other things – such as housing, neighbourhood disputes or debt – the team will invite them for a longer discussion about how they can help.
The Council’s customer teams provide an important point of contact for residents looking to access Council services. Locality offices continue to offer an essential route for those seeking help and support.
The need to deliver more proactive services closer to people across the city is part of the Council’s 20-minute neighbourhood strategy. This will allow everyone to live well locally and meet most of their daily needs from within their own community by walking, cycling, wheeling or taking public transport.
Council Leader Cammy Day met with the team and Citizens Advice Edinburgh colleagues involved in the project on Tuesday to see their work in action.
Council Leader Cammy Day, said: “We want to make sure that everyone living in Edinburgh can easily reach the services and support that the Council offers. We’re working with our local partners and communities to plan and deliver services that meet everyone’s needs in a better way.
“Citizen Space at Tynecastle Community Wing provides exactly that – a new convenient and welcoming space that’s making it easier for people to use our services and receive advice.
“This is all part of our plan to support everyone’s wellbeing and end poverty and isolation in Edinburgh. These local community hubs will bring daily services together for everyone to help create more social and liveable communities.”
The Citizen Space is a drop-in facility for residents to use as they need it, but the team is also regularly out and about in the area to speak with local people and see how they can help. Look out for them in their 20-Minute Neighbourhood team jackets.
At a meeting in Edinburgh yesterday (Friday 27th January) Scotland’s Council Leaders expressed their extreme disappointment that the Cabinet had decided to make interventions in relation to minimum learning hours and pupil teacher ratio.
Council Leaders were clear that given the Scottish Budget for next year, there is a crisis in Local Government funding like never before and the reaction from Scottish Government so far does not reflect the crisis councils, and our communities are facing.
Council Leaders reiterated the limited options facing Local Government as a result of the Budget, now made worse by Scottish Government’s intentions around teacher numbers and the hours children spend in school.
Commenting in a joint statement COSLA Spokespeople Katie Hagmann (Resources) and Tony Buchanan (Children and Young People) said: “This is an unnecessary and unwanted attack and intervention on our democratic mandate as elected politicians in our own right. We are seeing potentially unworkable proposals foisted on us without any prior discussion or consultation with Local Government – proposals we will be seeking legal advice on.
“We believe the teacher census information, which can only ever be a single snapshot in time, does not present the whole picture. It does not reflect that the attainment gap is moving in a positive direction or that we have recruited between August- December 620 teachers permanently and a further 400+ on either a temporary or fixed term basis.
“We have already written to Scottish Government with robust evidence of the investment that councils have been making in teaching and pupil support staff. We’ve also highlighted the impact that the proposals will have across other council services, with cuts and job losses having to once again be taken from already hard pressed everyday essential service like roads, libraries, and waste.
“It is very disappointing that it has come to this, but we have been honest and upfront with Scottish Government throughout the Budget process. Our budget lobbying and in particular ‘Education SOS’ (attached) made clear the potential impacts on education services prior to the budget announcement, given the pressure of £1bn that exists for Local Government.
“This move will not stop councils from being forced to make reductions in the support we provide to children and young people. Local authorities will have to consider cutting pupil support staff, libraries, youth work and other vital services that support the attainment, health and wellbeing of children and young people.”
Local Government spending decisions are being increasingly directed by Scottish Government, and the way Local Government finances are presented by Scottish Government is potentially confusing for the general public.
This can lead to raised expectations and lack of clarity in our communities about the reality of what is now possible to deliver on the ground, COSLA said today (Monday 16th January).
COSLA was clear that this year we needed and asked for a £1bn extra in real terms however we have ended up with £38million and that this was simply not good enough.
COSLA added that to avoid socially harmful cuts, the finances of Local Government need early and proactive discussions to avoid an annual public argument about the reality of what can and cannot be afforded by Councils.
Councils also need more freedom to address local priorities and the ability to focus on improving outcomes.
Commenting today, COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann said: “Given the significance of our council services to the lives and livelihoods of everyone across Scotland, communities deserve clear and consistent facts in relation to Local Government finance rather than a yearly debate on how much money is or is not available.
“All our communities are concerned about is the level of service they can expect that there is support for the most vulnerable and want to ensure their local environment looks and feels as good as it can – all of these things are under threat because of successive years of underfunding.
“Last week saw the publication of the Accounts Commission’s report on the health of council finances. The report makes it clear that councils are going to have to take very tough decisions over the next few years to balance the books, given the financial pressures they face.
“Responding to the Accounts Commission report, Scottish Government has quoted both real and cash terms increases of £2.2 bn between 2013-14 and 2022-23, but this is contradictory.
“We owe it to our communities to be clear, consistent and transparent about the starting point and how much less, in reality, councils have to spend year on year on the services that our communities rely on.
“In 2013-14, the Local Government funding settlement was worth £10.3 bn. Looking to 22-23 the Scottish Government provided £12.5 bn. This does equate to a £2.2 bn cash increase. However, that increase is heavily ring fenced and directed funding for core services and local priorities has stayed the same.
“The reality of having the same amount of money this year as 10 years ago for core services is a real terms cut. As well as increasing costs, this money is also now required to deliver more services than it was 10 years ago – Scotland’s population has increased, the number of households has gone up, COVID has left a legacy of support needs for the most vulnerable and as people live longer, their care needs have become more complex. This is just a snapshot of the demands being faced by councils, not to mention inflation and energy costs.
“For 2023-24, Scottish Government has stated that councils have seen a “£570m increase in their budgets” but the reality is, that only £38m of this can go towards pressures such as inflation, pay and service demand with the rest is for policy commitments that are already in the system, for example £100m to meet Real Living Wage commitments in social care.
“To put this into perspective, a 1% increase in pay across the Local Government workforces equates to around £100m. £38m will not go very far, especially when combined with energy price hikes, supporting the most vulnerable and our commitments to tackle the climate emergency.
“This year, demand for services like social care is at an all-time high but given the range of pressure facing councils, they simply don’t have the resources they need to work towards keep people out of hospital.
“Each day during winter, there is quite rightly a focus on getting people out of hospital to free up beds– currently councils support just over 97% of patients to be discharged without delay.
“The problem is not just getting people out of hospital but stopping them going in – councils simply don’t have the resources they need to provide the care packages or the interventions that prevent ill-health.
“COSLA’s key concerns are not only the socially harmful impact of cuts on our communities, but the way in which Local Government finance has been presented to them. The messaging is that there is more money for essential services each year despite this not being the case with councils asking communities about where they want to see cuts and reductions if essential services, like schools, roads, waste collection, child and adult protection, environmental health and social care are to continue to be delivered, every day of every year.”
Helping families and services through the cost of living crisis
Eradicating child poverty, transforming the economy to deliver net zero and creating sustainable public services will be the key aims of the Scottish Budget 2023-24.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney warned relentless prioritisation was needed to tackle the combined impact of high inflation, the ongoing economic consequences of Brexit and the UK Government’s plans to reduce expenditure in future years, which are projected to reduce the Scottish Government’s funding under the Barnett formula from 2025.
He said the Budget would channel support to where it was most needed while beginning a process of reform to help public services face the future with strength and resilience.
Mr Swinney said: “Families, businesses and our public finances are under sustained economic pressure and the Scottish Government has acted decisively to provide what support it can within its limited resources.
“We have allocated £3 billion in 2022-23 to mitigate the impact of the cost of living crisis, including targeted help such as increasing the game changing Scottish Child Payment to £25 per eligible child per week – a 150% increase within eight months.
“However, given the fiscal constraints of devolution, it is not possible to go as far as we would like and so the Budget will prioritise three areas – eradicating child poverty, transforming the economy to deliver net zero and creating sustainable public services.
“Difficult decisions are required and resources will be targeted where they are most needed and can secure maximum value from every pound spent.
“The economic challenges we face also require a fundamental change in the way we manage public spending. The Bank of England is predicting the longest recession for a century so this Budget will set in motion reforms that will place our finances and public services on a more sustainable and resilient footing for the future.
“This is a time for firm leadership and bold decision making. Steps we take now will help ensure Scotland emerges from the current crisis a stronger, fairer, greener country.”
The Scottish Budget 2023-24 will be presented to the Scottish Parliament on Thursday, 15 December.
COSLA launched its campaign last week in advance of the Scottish Budget on 15 December – an ‘SOS call’ to Save our Services.
It is a rallying call, telling communities everything they need to know about the impact of the Scottish Government’s forthcoming budget on our council services, and our communities in the coming year.
COSLA says the SOS call reflects the extremely precarious financial situation in which Councils in Scotland find themselves, during a particularly challenging period. This is as a consequence of real-term cuts to the core budgets of Scotland’s 32 Councils over recent years.
The call comes ahead of the Deputy First Minister outlining the Scottish Budget on December 15th but reflects the reality of what the government set out in its spending plans last May.
COSLA’s President Councillor Shona Morrison said: “There are many areas in which Local and Scottish Government work together for our communities and I fully appreciate that money is extremely tight – all Governments are having to cope with rising inflation and fuel costs
“However, with little room left to manoeuver, the Scottish Government’s spending plans as they stand will see Council services either significantly reduced, cut or stopped altogether. 70% of Local Government’s budget is spent on staffing, so it is inevitable that current spending plans will lead to job losses. The very serious impact of this scenario is that the critical work council staff do on prevention and early intervention will reduce significantly.
COSLA’s Vice President Councillor Steven Heddle said: “In May, the ‘flat cash’ plans looked difficult for us. Today, with prices increasing across the board, including energy costs, and inflation sitting at almost 10% and at risk of rising still further, Local Government is now on extremely dangerous ground.
“Make no mistake, what we will now face is Councils struggling to deliver even the basic, essential services that communities rely on. To put this into perspective, the estimated £1bn gap for councils in 23/24 is the equivalent of the entire budget for early learning and childcare across Scotland or 17,500 teachers. A funding gap of this magnitude will have an impact on all our communities, with the most vulnerable who rely on these services suffering the worst consequences.”
COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann concluded: “We are at a crisis point like never before – the impact for communities is serious and needs to be reconsidered.
“The financial impacts for other parts of the public sector are also serious. When councils can’t focus spend on prevention, for example on preventing ill-health, services like the NHS will end up spending significantly more money when issues become more serious.
“Directors of Finance across Scotland’s Councils are sufficiently concerned about the financial sustainability of councils that they have written to the Deputy First Minister outlining their concerns.
“This really is an SOS call from Scotland’s Councils –people in communities across Scotland will be pulled into further poverty and uncertainty without adequate funding for the vital services that support them”.
