The Citizen 48 - Page 1
Ashton-Under-Lyne 
Audenshaw Denton Droylsden Dukinfield Hyde Longdendale Mossley Stalybridge
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Page 1
Budget 2009/10
2009/10 budget sees more funding for priorities plus a low council tax rise
Tameside's part of this year’s Council Tax was set at a 3.15 per cent increase at the recent budget announcement meeting keeping it in line with inflation.
With the fire and police precepts, this figure was increased to 3.58 per cent, still well below the five per cent ceiling imposed on all local authorities by central government.
But this year’s budget took on extra importance, as the local authority looks towards helping local residents and businesses through the current world economic downturn.
Executive Council Leader, Cllr Roy Oldham signalled the council’s intent when he said: “This year’s budget for all councils should have significant factors that are aimed at helping safeguard local jobs and I believe that local government has a duty to its residents and businesses to do so.”
Because the council has been prudent with the handling of its finances it finds itself in a strong position to take the necessary action to make it happen.
The theme of this year’s budget announcement was based on the people’s priorities – safe, green, clean, learning, prosperous streets, a programme of intense internal works, a return saving from managed collections to the borough’s residents as well as a low Council Tax rise.
In other words this will means funds for:
- The people’s priorities
- A massive injection of capital for local work
- A sustained broad borough-wide capital programme
- A return of financial savings to householders gained from managed bin collection.
One of the keystones of this year’s announcement is the help the council is offering local businesses to get through the credit crunch.
Called Tameside Works First the campaign is designed to offer as much help and support to local traders as possible to help them survive the crunch by creating schemes of work that they can bid for. ‘A Vision’ team drawn from key members of the local business community will also be established to think of new ways of beating the credit crunch.
In an innovative move the council has adapted its constitution so that small and medium sized businesses can have their bills for council work paid in 10 days as opposed to the current 30 day target.
Another highlight in the budget speech was the announcement of a scheme called ‘Cash in the Bin’. Under the plan the money saved through managed collections will be put towards the police precepts, provide free parking on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays on all council car parks after 3pm to help the retail trade and £200,000 for local community groups.
Deputy Council Leader Cllr Joe Kitchen said at the budget meeting: “Our priorities are and must be on supporting our own community. So our focus will be on helping small and medium-sized businesses to survive and thrive.
“This budget reflects and recognises the majority of Tameside people’s priorities and requirements. It is essentially a ‘people’s budget’ providing improvement to the area and to services.
“We are doing well but there is still so much more to do on this never ending improvement programme of betterment.”
Crunch-busting projects already on the horizon include:
Cllr Oldham: "There is much work to be done."
- £2.4M adapting disabled people’s homes
- £0.35M on Anchor work in older people’s homes
- £0.72M maintenance of public buildings
- £3.4M on devolved school grants
- £1.2M on school repairs
- £0.2M on public building disability works
- £0.4M on housing group repairs
- £0.31M on engineering projects
- £0.1M on Groundwork Trust work
- £0.9M on cemetery safety work
- Selected free car parking
Budget breakdown
While celebrating our past successes is important, looking and planning for the future is crucial.
This year with the global financial problems caused by international and national banks, the council is determined to minimise the business and job losses in Tameside whilst continuing with the guarantee of low council tax increases.
A number of capital schemes have been designed to help.
- ‘Tameside Works First’ a £12m capital investment into the borough for small local businesses to carry out essential works which will include:
- Adaptations to people’s houses for those with disabilities
- School repairs
- Repairing all eight of our cemeteries, standing headstones, footways, walls
- Engineering facilities
- Public buildings maintenance.
- The council also aims to:
- Pay all bills to small businesses in ten days (instead of 30) to help cash flow
- Create an access unit to apply for business relief
- Make available interest free energy loans up to £200,000.
- Recycle Waste Reward: increasing our recycling rates, together with managed collections, can save hundreds of thousands of pounds of your money. This year the council expects to save £600,000 which will be spent in your community and added to services to reduce the police precept charge.
- Free car parking will be provided from 3pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday on council owned car parks in order to help the evening retail economy.
- Secondly, the police precept increase and thus the council tax will be reduced.
- Thirdly, direct finance will be provided to the community panels which are soon to be set up across the borough and fund local projects out in the community.
- This creates a hat trick of returns for the council's managed waste collections.
The council also intends to allocate a £6m injection to help the borough maintain its local jobs and improve services. It also wants local communities to feel the benefits of efforts made in the streets where they live.
Safe Streets
- Criminal damage has been reduced by 17%
- 97% of people say they feel safer in their neighbourhoods
- Theft of motor vehicles has fallen by 28%
- Fixed penalty notices have helped reduce dog fouling and littering
- Calls to the police about youths causing annoyance have seen a 19.5% reduction.
Attractive Streets
- The council has set out a programme of improvements to the street scene
- The council work hard to ensure the joy of many is not spoiled by the poor attitude of a few
- The council won the North West Cleanest Street Award
- Bronze sculptures and heritage maps have been erected across the borough.
Clean Streets
Waste management improvements
- Street lighting cost have been cut
- An energy awareness campaign for residents has been launched
- A total of ten green flags and five pennants have been won
- Once again the council is North West In Bloom champions.
Prosperous Streets
- Ashton market hall has been rebuilt at a cost of £16m
In the last six years over £437m has been invested by the public and private sector in Tameside – this has brought 1768 jobs to the area
- Homes and jobs are being created in the Droylsden Marina development
- Ashton Moss continues to prosper.
Learning Streets
- Results at Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4 are again our best ever
£1m funding to transform the borough’s parks has been successfully bid for
- Over 11,000 school pupils have access to free museum workshops and transport to museums and galleries
- Over 1,000 people visited the new Rutherford Gallery in Hyde and Portland Basin is the best visited local authority museum in the area.
Caring Streets
- Adult services received excellent results in their inspection and is officially rated as best in the country
- The council was judged excellent for its Supporting People Programme
- More older people are being helped to live independently in their own homes
- £1.5m funding for the Older People’s Project has been successfully secured
- A free service called CORA to enable older people to remain healthy and active within their own community has been developed.
Active Streets
10,000 people are more active each year with our Sports and Physical Activity Alliance
- The number of school children participating in PE and school sport for more than two hours per week, has increased to 86 per cent
- Schools are being supported with the successful coaches in schools programme with over 7,000 participants a week
- The £7.1m refurbishment of Hyde, Ashton and Copley pools will be finished soon.
Healthy Streets
- The 'Know your Numbers' campaign to measure blood pressure and BMI has been launched
Campaigns to encourage sensible drinking, weight management, sexual health, smoking cessation and the early diagnosis of breast cancer have been launched
- Connect 4 Life targets those at risk of developing circulatory disease
- £8m has been invested in the development of sports and leisure activities in 2008/9. A further £6m will be spent to improve facilities over the next two years
- Free swimming for the over 60's will be available later this year.
