The council is facing an unprecedented funding gap of £33.6 million next year and will effectively declare itself bankrupt if it doesn’t get exceptional financial support from the government.
That support comes in the form of a capitalisation direction – permission for the council to bridge its funding gap by selling assets or borrowing.
PRESSURES: Council leader Simon Geraghty (Image: Worcestershire County Council)
At a cabinet meeting on Thursday (January 16), council leader Simon Geraghty said chief financial officer Phil Rook had already written to the Ministry of Health, Communities and Local Government to ask for exceptional financial support.
Cllr Geraghty said this was “right and proper” and not a decision that was taken lightly.
“The pressures are unrelenting,” he said. “Our income is growing but is not keeping pace with demand.”
READ MORE: Cabinet approves spend of up to £1.85m on County Hall
READ MORE: Worcestershire council faces bankruptcy over funding gap
Cllr Geraghty said the council had embarked on a £37m “savings and efficiencies” programme this financial year and was on track to deliver at least 75 percent of that.
He warned that further cuts would have to be made next year as well as the “disposal of capital assets and land or property”.
“This is not a long-term solution,” he admitted. “It buys us time.”
County Hall has been closed completely since June when legionella bacteria was found in the building.
Parts of the council’s headquarters had been off-limits since September 2023 when reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was found on site.
What are your thoughts? You can send a letter to the editor to have your say by clicking here. Letters should not exceed 250 words and local issues take precedence.
In recent months, the council has been carrying out exploratory work to find out whether a return to County Hall is feasible.
At Thursday’s meeting, Cllr Geraghty said bringing the building back into use would cost significantly more than the £1.5m figure the council had set aside, so the work would not be done.
The building is therefore “surplus to requirements”, he said.
“It is right we make a decision on what to do with it. It is a large building and the good people of Worcestershire will expect us to look at it.”
He said a report on County Hall will come before the next cabinet meeting in February.