A SERIES of engagement events have been announced so residents in north Somerset can give their views and help shape the council’s budget priorities.

North Somerset Council sets its budget every year, as part of its four-year corporate plan, to state exactly how much money there is to spend – and what the funds will be spent on.

“This year is particularly challenging, and urgent work is being undertaken to help balance the budget,” a North Somerset Council spokesperson said.

Forecasts show the council needs to make total savings of more than £53 million over the next three years.

The council has said its budget is strained thanks to it providing more support for more younger adults and older people than in previous years.

As part of the cost-saving measures already introduced, the council introduced parking charges at a number of locations in Nailsea, Clevedon and Portishead.

With this in mind, residents are being asked to take part in an online budget development survey, found here, which is now live until November 22 at 5pm.

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The survey asks residents for their key priorities, issues they are concerned with, what they’d particularly like to prioritise for investment and improvement, what level of council tax increase they would support in the coming year and their preferred approach for delivering council services.

This year, for the first time, there is also a budget simulator where residents can ‘build your own budget’ to make the £53 million saving.

Residents can experiment with various budget options and see the likely impact of their choices on the services we deliver.

Councillor Mike Bell, leader of the council, will be hosting workshops to go over the budget simulator.

“If you are interested in attending one of these in-person workshops, please join our Citizen’s Panel,” a spokesperson said.

Alternatively, the council is hosting two ‘budget drop in’ sessions which are open to all residents and partners. No need to book.

• November 7 between 5.30pm and 7pm at the Town Hall in Weston-super-Mare. Arrive at the library reception and a council officer will meet you there.
• November 14 between 5.30pm and 7pm at North Somerset Council’s ‘Castlewood’ office in Clevedon. Arrive at reception and a council officer will meet you there. Here residents will be able to meet council staff, talk through the survey and answer any questions they may have.

Cllr Bell said: “We’d like everyone across North Somerset to take part in our budget development engagement and let us know their views and priorities by the closing date of Friday, November 22, 5pm.

“Your feedback is invaluable and will help inform our budget.

“Like many councils across the country, we’re facing an unprecedented financial challenge.

“After years of austerity and reductions in government funding, we quite simply don’t have enough income to cover our forecast expenditure.

“We are going to have to make tough decisions and your feedback will help us know your priorities.

“We are trying to do more than ever to inform and involve residents and partners in this process and help us to tackle these issues together.

“This is why this year we’ve launched both a survey and an innovative budget simulator to give residents a voice.

“We will also be running dedicated sessions with panels of our residents to work together through the challenges and options we have.

“We cannot promise to deliver everything that our residents ask for or might want, but we will use the results of this work to inform our decisions. Good decisions are the result of working together and I would urge everyone to engage and have a say.”

A budget update, including the engagement session feedback, will be presented at the next Executive meeting on Wednesday, December 4.

Proposed savings plans will be shared in December ahead of final budget discussions in February.