THE USE of reserves and £13.5 million of savings could help deliver a balanced budget in a stark financial climate as East Sussex plans how it will spend £578.8 million on services in 2025/26.

Proposals for East Sussex County Council’s budget will be presented to Cabinet next week along with a Council Plan which will help ensure limited funding is focussed on areas of priority for the county. Cabinet will be asked to make recommendations to Full Council when it meets to set the budget on Tuesday, February 11.

Despite the authority investing £55million more in 2025/26 than the previous year, the report suggests the use of £12 million of reserves is needed to bridge the significant funding gap the authority faces, some of which will be addressed with savings of £13.5 million.

With Council Tax representing around 70 per cent of the budget, proposals include an increase of 2.99 per cent, with an Adult Social Care Precept of 2 per cent.  This would mean a Band D home would pay an additional £1.70 per week in Council Tax for services including roads, schools, social care and libraries.

On Tuesday, January 28, Cabinet will be told that robust and challenging responses are needed to what is the “most difficult set of financial circumstances the Council has ever experienced”.

Whilst East Sussex’s situation reflects the national picture, the demographic make-up and needs of the county’s population presents greater challenges.

The report highlights the ageing population of the county – with more than a quarter of the population 65 or over, the fact that 78,000 residents live in areas amongst the top 20 per cent most deprived nationally, and the limitations the county’s natural environment has on development to support economic growth.

With growth in need and demand for statutory, demand-led services for vulnerable children and adults accounting for around three quarters of the council’s budget, the cost to maintain core services has increased significantly.

The report welcomes some additional money included in 2025/26’s funding from central Government, but warns it is “not sufficient to address the ongoing impact of increased service demands and high levels of inflation in prior years, together with the impact of increases in the national living wage and increases in employers’ national insurance contributions on our providers, especially in social care”.

With reserves only available to use once, and further savings almost impossible, Cabinet will be warned that without a significant and permanent increase in funding the council will have to consider more extreme options in 2026/27 and beyond, including seeking Exceptional Financial Support from Government.

Papers for next week’s Cabinet meeting can be viewed at Agenda for Cabinet on Tuesday, 28th January, 2025, 10.00 am | East Sussex County Council, where a webcast of the meeting will be available.

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