Somerset Council has confirmed that in a “worst case scenario”, 450 of its staff will be made redundant, to avoid it effectively going bankrupt.
Somerset Council has opened a formal 45-day consultation on compulsory redundancies. The potential job losses are in addition to the 195 voluntary redundancies announced earlier this year.
The news comes as part of the council’s plans to restructure and rein in its projected budget overspend by saving £30-£40m by April, to avoid going bust.
The council said in a statement: “This has been one of the hardest decisions we have had to make and is driven by the government underfunding for adults and children’s services.
“While the size of the workforce will reduce, we will continue to protect and provide essential services for our residents, communities and businesses.”
The council had declared a financial emergency in November 2023.
In February, the council committed to the maximum possible rise in council tax and sold about £20m of non-operational assets.
In the 2023/24 financial year, the council achieved an underspend of about £1.8m, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
This sum has been added to its general reserves, meaning it can be used in the coming months and years should costs in other areas rise.
However, spending on other areas is still higher than forecast – particularly in children’s services and waste services.
Council leader Bill Revans has written to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, highlighting the challenges facing local councils and calling for urgent action to prioritise local government.
Neil Guild, the chair of the Somerset branch of Unison, said: “The actual practical reality, what we are looking at, is quite a lot of roles are going in what we would consider front-line services. It will have an impact on the members of the public who receive those services.”
