Peterborough residents can help Shape Your City at special events discussing council priorities

Residents, businesses and other groups across the city can have their say on what Peterborough City Council’s priorities should be for the next three years at a series of consultation events – starting tomorrow (Wednesday).

The council say they are facing a number of challenges over the next few years, which is impacting what they can spend their budget on.

Challenges include:

The number of people coming to the council for housing support as they’re homeless rose 40% from an average of 51 a week in 2021/22 to 70 a week in 2023/24.

In the current year the authority is expecting to exceed their home to school transport budget by £1.1m due to increasing numbers of children with special education needs and disabilities who require transport to and from school.

In adult social care, the council received 2,580 new requests for support in the last 12 months - 18% more than the previous 12 months.

The number of children subject to a care plan has doubled since last year (277 in March 2024, 136 in March 2023).

High interest rates mean the council are refinancing debt at much higher rates, which is costing an extra £2.5m each year.

Councillor Mohammed Jamil, Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Governance, said: “Like all local authorities, we continue to face ongoing financial pressures, and it is essential that we reach and maintain a position of financial sustainability.

“The council is currently facing an in-year overspend of around £10m and we are estimating that the budget gap in 2025/26 could range between £13.2m and £24.3m. This means that the council needs to be more precise about how it spends its limited budget and clear with residents about where our focus will be placed over the next three years. This also must be achievable, so that we can deliver what we are aiming to - our priorities must be in the right areas and must be affordable.

“As reflected in our values, we are committed to being bold and innovative, we respect our people and communities, and we keep our promises. In fact, we will be as bold to say that due to our funding pressures, we cannot deliver everything we used to.”

A series of events for residents to gave their say will be taking place over the next few weeks, starting from tomorrow.

You don't need to book a place to attend.

The events are:

Wednesday 2 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) Peterborough Campus, City Centre

Thursday 3 October 2024, 6pm to 8pm - this session will take place online via Microsoft Teams - you don't need to have an account, you can join online by clicking this link or pasting into your browser - link to join the Shaping Our City Microsoft Teams online session

Monday 7 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Wellsprings Community Church, The Alpha Centre, Adderley, Bretton

Tuesday 8 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at CSK Hampton Church, Silver Hill, Hampton Centre

Monday 14 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Focus Community Centre, Chestnut Avenue, Dogsthorpe

Monday 21 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Salvation Army Citadel, 1203 Bourges Boulevard, New England

Tuesday 22 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Ormiston Bushfield Academy, Orton

Wednesday 23 October 2024, 7pm to 9pm at Stanground Academy, Peterborough Road, Stanground

You can also take part in an online survey at https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=ZLMn4x4EUUyC8skGp4-cyV8PwS9ohnJBqasozv3mCghUOE40U0pZSFgzSTlUNzIyRFBZREhOOVFDVCQlQCN0PWcu&route=shorturl

For more information, visit https://www.peterborough.gov.uk/council/consultations/shaping-our-city-consultation