Council tax has been frozen for Portsmouth residents for the second year running, following a meeting of Full Council that took some tough budget decisions.
The council’s grant settlement from the Government has been cut by almost £15m and as a result the council’s budget for 2011/12 included £15m of savings. The savings will result in the loss of 186 jobs across the council, some full-time and some part-time.
Although it needs to make savings, the council is continuing to deliver services that are important to Portsmouth residents. There’s no change to weekly rubbish collections, libraries and museums will remain open, as will adventure playgrounds.
The council is also continuing to invest in the city. A £10m capital programme was agreed at the meeting, including modernising more than 20 schools, and investing in the seafront, the splashpool at Hilsea, and Beechside residential unit. The programme includes £2m for local transport schemes.
The council is working with social enterprise, Yellow Kite, on improvements to Southsea Castle which will include a new cafe and free admission, and work is underway on the new library and customer contact centre in Palmerston Road.
Investment in modern care for our most vulnerable older residents will also continue, with a new care home opening at Harry Sotnick House in the spring and development of new extra care flats continuing. And the council is continuing to invest in private housing across the city, allowing more people to remain in their own homes.
The details of the Portsmouth city council budget announced on February 8th are availiable here
while details of the capital programme for 2011 - 2016 are available here
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