Supporting residents through the cost-of-living crisis, providing social care for children and adults and creating decent housing are key priorities Cabinet agrees the council should spend its money on over the next year.
The budget, approved by Cabinet yesterday (6 February) and subject to ratification from Full Council on 23 February, has been shaped with feedback from residents and reflects the challenging financial position the council finds itself in.
For over a decade, the money Brent receives directly from central Government has shrunk by nearly £200million. Meanwhile, as people are living longer and more people choose to live in Brent, there is higher demand for council services than ever before.
This coupled with rapidly rising inflation, which is driving up the cost of goods, services, supplies and running buildings too, has meant the council’s budget is under significant pressure.
The budget gap means £18million of savings are needed to balance the books. It is proposed that £13.5million will be delivered in the upcoming 2023-24 financial year and the remainder will be delivered in the 2024-25 financial year.