Birmingham City Council has announced its first round of cuts in order to pay off the remainder of its £760mn equal pay bill, which it was hit with last September. The plan is to save £112mn on child services and the workers that provide them.
Child services facing cuts
Parents are at the forefront; the Birmingham Children’s trust will be losing £20 million of its budget. This part of the council oversees social work, fostering, adoption and child disability help.
The Early Help programme will see a cut of £16.7mn out of its funding, potentially closing down the programme altogether. Parents dealing with issues in their child’s early years, whether it be economic or social, have counted on the scheme’s help in the past, but might not be able to for much longer.
An additional £9.3mn will also be cut from what is labelled as “unidentified efficiencies”. The council has hired an external improvement partner to find where more money can be taken from, without causing too much damage.
The cuts will not be taking place all at the same time, as almost half of them (which add up to £55mn) will occur by the end of this year and the rest in 2025. The full extent of when the cuts will happen are to be confirmed when the council’s cabinet meets on 27 February.
Vulnerable children affected too
Individual cuts might not seem that large, but their knock-on effects are far more substantial than people may realise.
There will be new restrictions on arranged transport to school for a lot of disabled children and their families. According to the council, home-to-school transport schemes are facing a major overhaul and in an attempt to save money, more parents will be asked to drive their children to school themselves.
Carol and Max have a disabled six-year-old son. They both work full-time jobs in order to survive. They said: “Our son is disabled and a lot of funding for me at school is being cut, which is a very big thing as it affects his education.”
Max continued: “That will affect us massively. If transport gets cut it means one of us will have to drop our hours and then we’re not making as much and everything will have a knock-on effect.”
Job losses come with the cuts
Part of the announced cuts are jobs within the services – £5mn is going to be saved by reducing staff this year and the next. Although details of those affected are not yet set out, youth and community workers are most at risk.
Carol voiced her concern on the subject by saying: “If you don’t have the money to train people in the sector now, then we’re not going to have those workers in the future which makes things worse.”
Struggling to stand on your own two feet
With less help being available to parents in Birmingham, parents need to plan months ahead just to be able to afford the necessities for their child. For example, according to the Schoolwear Association, a school uniform alone can cost an average of £100 per pupil, a price many families cannot afford due to inflation, increased cost of living and reduced benefits.
Carol said: “I plan for the whole year; I have to do a lot of planning with a six-year-old in school, I have to plan months ahead, pull off overtime just to buy his school uniform.”
But for others such as Roger and Ann, planning in advance doesn’t seem to have the same impact: “You plan the best that you can but it’s a lot harder, isn’t it?”
Increased costs to parents
Making matters worse, the council will also be increasing fees and charges by 10%, hoping to generate £330,000, leaving families with further costs. Local mother Shanaya commented: “It’s difficult and harder than it used to be, we’re just having to save more.”
As prices for goods and bills rise, Carol and Max struggle financially despite working two jobs. Carol said: “We work full-time and we’re not on any benefits or anything so it’s just harder.”
Local parent Steve said: “It’s been hard, really hard as we’re having two kids, it’s a nightmare”. Carol and Max share the same view: “We’re struggling, everything is more expensive.”
Despite the hardships, with saving and planning ahead being at the forefront of parents’ minds, families will hopefully be able to survive the tough times that lie ahead of them. But they also hope the council gets back on its feet soon.
Carol said: “To cut a considerable amount not only affects my son’s future but my daughter’s too. It’s all going to have a knock-on effect.”
CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO OUR CROWDFUNDER
HELP US BECOME STRONGER SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO DELIVER POWERFUL CITIZEN JOURNALISM!
