'SIGNIFICANT savings" have been outlined in West Somerset Council's forthcoming budget, including the closure of toilets, cuts in grant funding and further staff redundancies. The cuts will ride side by side with a five per cent increase in Council Tax if members of the full council back the recommendations of the cabinet. The aim is to plug a near £1 million hole in the council's finances, which has already seen the multi-million pound New Horizons leisure centre and swimming pool fall by the wayside. However, £50,000 has now been included in the budget for the potential re-opening of the Aquasplash pool if councillors decide to keep the facility - although no money has been set aside for running costs. An additional £60,000 has also been added for the increased cost of concessionary bus travel. In contrast, hundreds of thousands of pounds have been cut as the council struggles to meet its statutory duties and priorities. Parish and town councils will be asked if they want to take over the operation of toilets in Parks Walk, Minehead, at Exmoor House in Dulverton and in Church Street in Dunster - otherwise all three of the conveniences could be closed by the council. Artlife will have its budget cut by £20,000, while discretionary leisure funding will drop by £8,000. Councillors will have "reduced refreshments at meetings", saving £2,000, a saving of £5,000 has been earmarked on stationery costs, and £8,000 will go from the beach cleaning budget. The authority will save £1,000 by withdrawing its support from the community transport scheme, some £10,000 will be axed from the funding of information points and £6,800 has been earmarked as "savings on mileage costs". A further £13,900 would also be saved by the withdrawal of discretionary funding for burial grounds and amenity grants as part of the drive to claw back £222,400 from the overall revenue account. On top of that, the council has been given permission to "capitalise" severance costs of £296,000, meaning the figure can be set against the capital fund rather than the revenue budget. A further £118,000 has been highlighted as "contingency savings" by reducing the council's workforce. Interim finance director Allison Griffin told Wednesday's cabinet meeting the authority was finally at the stage where it could set a balanced budget and thanked the council's existing finance staff for their hard work. "I am pleased this budget will allow us to have our balances nearer the £300,000 mark," she said. "It is still below where we would want them to be, but it is a manageable level. "We have built in the additional costs of concessionary travel and the grant from the Working Neighbourhoods Fund, although we have to be aware that the funding will eventually run out." Previously, councillors were told increased payments to temporary staff, underbudgeting and higher uptake of concessionary bus fares were all to blame for the authority's precarious financial position. Mrs Griffin added: "The council is in a period of significant change and challenge that will, as outlined throughout this document, require effective budget management and robust financial decision making. "Costs will continue to rise and all councils face the challenges of making efficiency savings year on year. "Therefore, it remains essential to keep ongoing revenue growth to a minimum in order to prevent undue upward pressure on future years' budgets." The final decision on the budget and Council Tax will be taken at a full meeting of the council on February 27.
