Falkirk Council: SNP will back council tax freeze and plans to cut school week on hold for now

The SNP group has also confirmed it will not accept proposals to cut police officers in schools and they have also pledged to keep the annual firework display in Falkirk’s Callendar Park.

The council tax freeze will have a particular impact on Falkirk which historically has a low level of council tax and councillors had been told that a rise of at least five per cent would be needed to steady the council’s financial position.

The SNP leader of the council, Councillor Cecil Meiklejohn, said that accepting the freeze had been “a difficult decision” for the group.

In the end, she said they ”felt it was more important at this time to be looking at supporting our communities around the cost of living”.

Last minute negotiations between councils represented by CoSLA and the Scottish Government won the promise of an extra £62.7 million for local authorities.

But that extra funding will be dependent on what happens in the UK’s spring budget and will only go to local authorities who choose to freeze council tax.

That uncertainty means that funding has not yet been built into the budget and if the money does come through, Falkirk’s share is likely to be £1.77 million – far short of the £30 million shortfall the council faces this year alone.

The leader also concedes that “undoubtedly there will need to be a council tax rise next year”, although she added that she was not in a position to say what that might look like.

If the administration’s proposals are accepted, Falkirk Council will use £22 million of service concessions – money that is available because of changes in how the PFI schools are paid for.

But Chief Executive Kenneth Lawrie has made clear that that money will only last for a few years and if major long-term changes are not made to Falkirk Council’s budget it will find itself falling off a “financial cliff-edge”.

Mrs Meiklejohn says the council will be “working very hard to bring savings in-year that will help to potentially mitigate the levels of council tax rise needed in the future”.

She said there will be further savings to come in the year ahead as the council aims to become more “financially sustainable”.

Their aim is to use the service concessions “to invest within our communities”.

She said: “We have identified quite clearly a need for investment in our community facilities as we have a lot of ageing buildings that are no longer fit for purpose or financially viable.

“We need to look at how we deliver services in the future and some of that will require investment in capital – particularly around sport and leisure.”

The council had been making plans to save more than £5 million by making major changes to the school week, including no lessons for pupils on a Friday afternoon.

However, once again, the Scottish Government has made clear that any reduction in the length of the school week will not be acceptable.

Mrs Meiklejohn said that as a result they are “pausing” any changes until they fully understand the implications and it will not be included in this year’s budget.

As a minority administration, with 11 councillors out of 30, the SNP will need the backing of at least one other party to get their budget through.

At the time of writing, no other parties had proposed an alternative to the administration’s budget although that could well change before the meeting on Wednesday.

Falkirk Council will meet to set its budget on Wednesday at 10 am in Grangemouth Community Education Centre. The meeting will also be livestreamed.