Last week Northamptonshire county council, which is technically insolvent, published proposals that could lead to drastic loss of jobs and cuts to all its services over the next few months including core services such as children’s and adult social care. East-Sussex county council, has said it was preparing to cut back services to the bare legal minimum to cope with a cash shortfall that could leave it bankrupt within three years.
We would like to find out if there are any other councils around the UK that are experiencing or about to undergo cuts to services because of financial pressures. If you have knowledge about council services where you live, we would like to know the following:
Whether your local authority has announced or discussed formal plans or proposals to move to a basic legal minimum level of service (like Northamptonshire, or East-Sussex) overall, or to a reduced core offer within a particular service such as (but not only) libraries, home-to-school transport, road maintenance, or recycling depots.
Whether your council has announced formal plans or proposals to reduce or close non-statutory services such as (but not only) museums, parks, or plans to sell-off council buildings.
Whether any cuts are subject to legal challenge through judicial review (where the court decides whether a service is operating at a legal minimum. Last week two families won a case against Bristol city council after it planned to reduce funding of special education needs and disability (SEND) services.
You can share your tips, anonymously if you prefer, in the form below. It’s helpful if you leave contact information so that we can get in touch with you for more details. They will only be seen by the Guardian.
If you are having trouble using the form, click here. You can read terms of service here.
