Cambridgeshire: Council Reveals Budget

According to Cambridgeshire County Council, smaller sums of cash will also be spent on:

• Securing library services and transforming them to provide a twenty first century service. 
• Providing an additional £100,000 for support to carers and a further increase in funding for the voluntary and community organisations such as the Care Network, to support volunteering
• Protecting school crossing patrols
• Promoting cycle training in schools so it will be free at point of use
• Continuing the U project which helps year 11 pupils progress into education, employment or training.

Councillor Nick Clarke, leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, said: "At the heart of this budget is the desire to do what is right for Cambridgeshire and our communities while meeting the challenging savings targets.

We have listened closely to what residents have said and our proposals reflect our drive to promote Cambridgeshire as a place which is open for business and can lead UK PLC to recovery while providing local jobs and prosperity.

We are protecting the most vulnerable in our society by investing more in adult social care while working harder to drive down savings and work better with partners to improve the quality of life and health for residents. 

We are pushing forward investment in roads and much needed major transport infrastructure to meet the growing demands of the County and keep business and residents moving. 

At the same time we are saving libraries and finding ways to better provide community transport.

But it is a major challenge to make savings whilst investing where residents want us to.

That is why we have listened to residents who said they would be prepared to pay more to protect services. Putting up Council Tax is right for Cambridgeshire.

The alternative is a massive multi-million funding hole to fill in the future which would no doubt hit our most vulnerable residents."