Monmouthshire County Council (MCC) invites residents to attend special community events to be held next month to talk about the future of the county amidst a backdrop of significant financial cuts.
The council have planned five community events in Abergavenny, Caldicot, Chepstow, Usk and Monmouth that will look solely at the financial challenges the county faces over the next four years.
The council has recently been told by the Welsh Government that their funding will be drastically cut and whilst the authority expected some reduction in funding, the actual reduction is far beyond expectations.
With a budget of £160m, of which only £126m can be directly influenced, the council will need to find savings of at least £9m next year and a minimum of £23m over the next four years. Inevitably, this will have an impact on council services.
MCC’s Leader, Cllr Peter Fox said:
“There are some big decisions that will need to be made over the coming months. Some of that will mean services change, stop or are run by other community groups. We need to help people understand the situation that we’re all facing and the community events will give everyone a chance to ask questions and be involved.
“We want to talk with our communities and listen to what matters to them. I urge residents to come to the events in October and make their voices heard. Their input will be crucial in helping us focus our limited resources.”
Community events will be held on:
- 14th October, 6.30pm-8.30pm, Monmouth Comprehensive School
- 16th October, 6.30pm-8.30pm, Dewstow Primary School, Caldicot
- 17th October, 6.30pm-8.30pm, King Henry VIII School, Abergavenny
- 22nd October, 6.30pm-8.30pm, Chepstow Comprehensive School
- 28th October, 6.30-8.30pm, Monmouthshire County Council, County Hall, Usk
More information about the events will be published on www.monmouthshire.gov.uk/futuremonmouthshire nearer the time.
