Council budget cuts

[shetlander]

But, I wonder, has there been any sort of recent plan to replace the bad bits of the AHS while leaving the rest in place?.

 

The old buildings will almost certainly have to stay anyway but I suspect redeveloping it for the AHS will be a no, bearing in mind that having a building site next to a working school was one of the reasons the proposal to rebuild at the Knab was ditched this time last year. The alternative would be to have it relocated temporarily although I suspect the hassle and costs of having to decant a whole school only to have it moved back again after redevelopment would make that unfeasible.

 

Now that the decision has been made to site the AHS at Clickimin, far more sensible IMHO to look at redeveloping the Knab for another purpose after the AHS has gone, whether that be for housing or a replacement for Bells Brae or Shetland College.

[JustMe]

One of the first things that the new Chief Executive ought to do is organise some sort of competition for council staff to come up with ways to cut the budget without doing too much harm to services........with a prize for the most original ideas rather than the ones that save the most money. Then perhaps something similar for the public.

 

Meanwhile he could get a report drawn up so that he would know just how many buildings or plots of land the council owns (excluding council houses that are currently let) and compare that with a list of all properties the council currently rents so that the council can move towards some sort of sensible system with all council functions carried out from council owned buildings and surplus buildings sold off.

[stephen]

Public toilets, yes I am sure their is the yearly cleaning and repair expense but surely when only building new ones every 50 years or more so a fund built from council tax payments and the same should apply with maintaining graveyards and we dont need to build them as often.

 

Public toilets aren't a priority, and like most other councils I think SIC should close the majority of them and charge for the use of the remainder. 40p to pee!

 

Ferries and roads should be funded by national governments, surely we pay enough in road tax and all of the other taxes, if shetland is not getting enough back surely we must wonder why we pay them in the first place.

 

I find this to be a very interesting argument. I think if you were to ave this discussion with the majority of mainlanders, they would have quite a heated discussion with you! "Why should we pay for ferry services that only you use?". I do think that the Scottish government should pay for the running of ferry services, but only for a reasonable, minimal timetable - with any additional sailings funded localy. I do think that there is too much waste associated with some ferry sailings up here - the number of Bressay sailings that are completely empty is ridiculous!

 

But this all comes down to waste, reduce that and I think that we would all be surprised by the savings!

[Carlos]

Have there not been several years when the council has dipped into reserves to cover their yearly revenue spend?

Yes, it's been done, but I think that gets them in trouble with the auditors?

I wasn't putting public toilets as any great priority but just pointing folk to the wide scope of things that are funded from the capital programme beyond the big expensive headline projects that make the papers.

[Carlos]

Ferries and roads should be funded by national governments, surely we pay enough in road tax and all of the other taxes

Just saw this one - Road pricing 'inevitable', says RAC

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/7871042/Road-pricing-inevitable-says-RAC.html

[Kavi Ugl]

I personally think the social care side of the SIC is out of control and is being teated as some kind of sacred cow. Just look at the job vacancies. It's all social care, social care and more social care.

 

Look at that mega centre they're building at the North Ness, and all for a population of 22,000

 

I just fear for what will actually be cut.....

[MuckleJoannie]

I personally think the social care side of the SIC is out of control and is being teated as some kind of sacred cow. Just look at the job vacancies. It's all social care, social care and more social care.

 

 

I think that the job vacancies are mainly due to staff turnover.

[owre-weel]

I wid hiv agreed 100% with Muckle Joanie that most of the job vacancies are due to turn over. Den I looked at the cooncil tax leaflet he linked to before, and it says most of the 150 plus new jobs are in social care. I quote from the leaflet.

"This increase is predominantly the result of frontline staffing requirements in the Social Care Service to meet increasing client base."

 

Nae doot Muckle Joanie is right that it also involves a lot o turnover, hopefully this is something that can be addressed as recruitment costs are incredibly high and if we are losing staff who have had to be trained at even more cost, we need to find out if there is any underlying issues that could be addressed. I do not know if the Social care dept does "leaving" interviews. Mabey its time they gave it some thought.

[Rasmie]

A lot are attracted to social work due to whats seen as comparitively good wages.

However the jobs involved are often not easy and perhaps that and the un"social" hours make the people who have the vocation for it a bit special and possibly "underpaid" after all!

I certainly couldna do their job.

Only way to make cuts is to make relatives look after their own at their own cost! It could happen yet. so be careful what you wish for.

[Ghostrider]

^^ The un-social hours I wouldn't mind, but you're right, the work is not something I would tolerate. Its one thing when its a family member that needs that level of care, but just taking on all-comers, friend and foe alike takes a relatively unique kind of person. For those who can stick it, I wouldn't begrudge them their "good" wages too much, nor can I knock those who try it, but move on. Better those who think they can, but find in practice they can't, move on and are replaced by those who can and will. When folk need looking after it needs to be done right.

 

The only pity is we have a society/culture/civilisation today where every generation expects to have their own home and own seperate life, and materialistic lifestyle expectations which can only be realistically fulfilled by everyone of working age working full time. It leaves the care of the young, the incapacitated and the elderly as a burden on the public purse, whereas only 40-50 years ago with multi-generation occupation of houses and fewer folk in full time work away from home, the vast majority of the young, incapacitated and elderly were cared for by family, and only a tiny handful who had few or no close relatives needed to draw on the public purse. I guess folk need to realise they can't have it both ways, folk in need of care are always going to be a cost to everyone else one way or the other.

[paulb]

A lot are attracted to social work due to whats seen as comparitively good wages.

However the jobs involved are often not easy and perhaps that and the un"social" hours make the people who have the vocation for it a bit special and possibly "underpaid" after all!

I certainly couldna do their job.

Only way to make cuts is to make relatives look after their own at their own cost! It could happen yet. so be careful what you wish for.

 

they pay about 1 1/2 times that of the nhs. staff nurses are leaving the nhs to become care assistants for the same or better pay with a lot less paper work and hassle.

 

now if the council can afford that then fare enough but if not maybe they should equalise pay so that the care sector are not competing on wages.

[ArabiaTerra]

^^^^ I think quite a few of you are missing something here. There are a lot more old people than there were 40, 30 or even 20 years ago. People are living longer.

 

More people means more care required, more care means more carers and more care homes. It's as simple as that.

 

Also, while people are living longer because we have cured, or have better treatments for many of the diseases of old age that affect the physical body, things haven't moved on as quickly when it comes to brain diseases like Dementia and Altzheimers, so there are a lot of people alive now but away with the fairies, who would not have survived this long in the past and these people often require much higher levels of care than those with purely physical disabilities.

 

The whole demographic profile of the population has changed and the care system has had to change to match this.

[paulb]

mmm not very pc. im not sure my father in law would have liked being called it.

there are a lot of people alive now but away with the fairies

 

yes folks are living longer. but the biggest diffrence is family structure. in the past there would have been relatives to help look after granny. but now the family is spread aboutv there is less family support. very sad but thats how it is.

[papastour]

(** mod edit - merged to existing thread **)

 

How to save money for the council and the people of Shetland

 

1)The outer Islanders (papa stour)could drop their own rubbish at the piers for collection.

 

2)People found wasting the councils and authoritys time on false or exaggerated claims about a neighbouror/ situation should be charged.

 

3)Raise the cost of parking in Lerwick so its a incentive for people to use the bus

 

4)Charge car parking at the airports, this may encourage more business for taxis/private hire business

 

5)Charge for toilot paper and soaps in the public toilots.

 

6)Viking Bus Station to start selling refreshments again( revenue earner)

 

7)Learning Centre/Library to charge tourists for use of the new computers

 

8)Grass cutting service could be replaced in some areas with council sheep and then sell the sheep at a later date

 

9)Less police and more rights to defend yourself and property without getting punished yourself

 

10)Council Letters and Bills to be sent by email rateher than post/ Our responsibility to find our own emails, and be helped at various computer places to retrieve our emails if we dont have computer

 

11)If on council business drive slower, saves fuel etc.

 

12)Have slower speeds on the roads, reduces wear and tear on the roads.

 

13)Do we need so many staff at the swimming pools?

 

14)Next lot of councilors elected to do the works as volunteers and just get expences couvered( serving the community spirit)

 

15)Any job offers to council workers and executives on a trial basis only, until we know they are any good.

 

16)Purchasing department must get quotes from other suppliers down south to make sure the local suppliers are competetive ie purchasing cars

i know from my own experience that the council pay over the odds when buying locally in cars

 

17)Keep council vehicles longer and well maintained( they dont fall apart after three years)

 

18)Councils could purchase second hand vehicles sometimes.

 

19)Some council staff could work from home some days of the week rather than traveling into town

 

20)Any drunks using accident and emergency services will be charged for costs

 

21)If RNLI are called out when some one has been negligent/stupid charged at a later date for costs( watch out captain calamity)

 

22)Any damage caused by vandals and found made to pay for damage or if children involved parents to pay full cost of repair

 

23)Any damage caused by car accident to council property, driver must pay the costs( bonus payed to anyone who helps find or name the driver)

 

24)If any Business debts are written off owing to the council and a councilor or someone in the finance dept had a interest or family connection in the business and had a vote in the matter without declaring should have the cebt put back onto them.

or the debt is reinstated if found to not been transparent in the transaction

 

25)Any council houses sold off, the money should be reinvested into another council house/flat

 

26)Some printed materials/ and public information doesnt need to go into the newspapers, and some doesnt need to be sent in the post

 

27)Islands that are populated should have a ferry/ plane and connecting services so that everyone can get to work every day (apart from Sundays)on the mainland if needed at a office working hours ie 9am

[Ghostrider]

^^ Evacuating Papa Stour would save a whole lot more than all those added together.

 

P.S. The RNLI is not a council expense, and Police costs to the council are dictated by Highlanders. a reduction in Police manning locally is unlikely to yield a pound for pound reduction in the SIC contribution.

 

#27 Would cost a fortune rather than save anything.