BUDGET proposals from South Ayrshire Council have been released for public consultation and have been described as “painful but necessary”.

The proposed savings that were announced on Tuesday, December 5, have been designed to bridge an “anticipated and unprecedented” funding gap of around £17million for 2018/19 as well as further cuts to South Ayrshire in 2019/20.

All the proposals will go to the public for consultation in the new year, which will be considered – no decisions have been made on any of the proposals and it will be the elected councillors who will decide which ones will go ahead when the council sets its budget in March 2018.

Service closures and reductions could mean that services are not available when customers want to use them, or people may have to travel further to access the service/facility they wish.

A number of proposals include:
The closure of Maybole Recycling Centre, stopping South Ayrshire funding grants, the removal of all school crossing patrol provision across the county and the closure of both Maybole and Prestwick Customer Service Centres, saving the council £315,317 in 2018/19.

The reduction of funding for road surfacing and revise the inspection regime which would save the council £106,500 in 2018/19 and £165,000 in 2019/20.

The reductions of street lighting costs through LED lighting replacement and bringing evening street lighting patrols to a halt between October and March, making a saving of £79,000 in 2018/19 and £184,000 in 2019/20.

The reduction of cleaning and janitation services and staffing in line with reducing the number of council building – this would save the council £602,374 over the two-year period.

It is proposed to increase charges for, allotment rental, burials and cremations, casual swimming, commercial waste, football pitches, garden waste, Girvan Harbour, licensing fees, parking, pitches/halls/school lets, planning, roads permits and orders, schools meals, special uplifts, which would save over £1million throughout the two-year period.

In terms of staffing, the budget proposes to review teaching allocation and provision, including number of schools and teachers, which could result in bigger class sizes and the consideration of the closure and merger of two primary schools, which have not yet been identified.

It also looks at the reduction in the numbers of school support staff including, school, assistants, the removal of Home Link Service and the removal of school librarians and school library assistants as well as the revision of overtime payment rates and the reduction of the working week by one hour for the relevant employees.

General budget reductions include the reduction of funding for school resources and materials, school campus cops, housing support and homelessness contracts and addressing community safety and antisocial behaviour issues.

Chief Executive, Eileen Howat, said: “Over the last eight years, we have saved an incredible £53 million and we have achieved that while minimising the impact on our public services as far as possible.

"However, there is only so far, we can go before the impact of the financial challenge really does start to bite. That’s exactly where we are now and why officers were asked to come up with wide-ranging proposals.”

Council Leader, Councillor Douglas Campbell, added: “A key part of our considerations will be listening to what the public have to say.

"And just because a proposal is currently on a list does not mean that it will happen and that’s why it’s so important that people let us know their views when the consultation gets underway next month.”