A gap of nearly £2.7 million in Lewisham Council’s budget will remain even after proposed budget cuts of nearly £11 million for the next financial year, council papers have disclosed.
Budgets will be reviewed across several public and social services, and this will likely include stopping some services altogether.
Further budget cuts will mean that Library opening times are likely to be reduced to the busiest times, “short break” services ended, and spending reduced on temporary accommodation.
The table below shows the biggest cuts to public services that the council are putting forward.
| Budget cut proposals | |
| Reduction in opening hours at Libraries | – £90,000 |
| Temporary Accommodation Cost Reduction | – £200,000 |
| Children’s Centre Budgets Review | – £500,000 |
| Stopping “Short Breaks” (children with disabilities away break from parents / carers to do activities) | – £200,000 |
| Youth Services Budget Review | – £300,000 |
| Review of the Temporary Accommodation (TA) Service Level Agreement (SLA) with Lewisham Homes (LH) | – £162,000 |
| Reduction in Mental Health Homecare costs | – £50,000 |
The council will also be making further cutbacks of £1.7 million on reassessing and realigning services but have not released any details.
Lewisham Council said that they “don’t want to make more cuts but are legally required to set a balanced budget, so we have no other choice.”
Silvana Altamore, Manager of Crofton Park Library, said they have not had access to funding from Lewisham Council since 2011 and now have to rely on volunteers and community organisations to keep it open.
Altamore said: “Spending cuts on libraries are one more step in de-humanisation of our society. I am not sure we will be here next year.”
She added: “Libraries are essential in a healthy society. They are a place for the community to meet, get informed in a critical way and grow. And they are free. No coffee buying is required to sit in one.”
The government has cut Lewisham Council’s budget by over £139 million over the last twelve years (2010-2022). The Autumn Statement last month revealed that local budgets are going to be cut by a further 10 per cent.
Lewisham Council’s Budget Reductions Report for 2023/24 says the reason for this gap is that the current economic situation in the UK and government allocation of funding means that they cannot “fully fund emerging pressures.”
“The current and forecast levels of inflation, the cost of living crisis faced by the country pushing up demand for public services, coupled with persistent uncertainty as to the level of funding that Government will provide or allow councils to raise, has impacted our ability to fully fund emerging pressures.”
Cabinet Member for Finance and Strategy, Amanda De Ryk told a recent council meeting: “It is clear that we are under stress due to the amount of cuts we have had to deliver since 2010. And more cuts mean more strain on the limited services we already have… the cuts don’t get any easier.”
These cuts are still being debated and won’t come into effect until after April 1, 2023.
