As this is my first blog of 2016, I’d like to
start by wishing you all a very happy new year and, I don’t know about you, but
I can’t believe how fast the time is going by as we get stuck in to what will inevitably
be a busy year for us all.
One of the biggest challenges we face in the
coming weeks is to finalise our budget for 2016/17. Nationally and locally our
economy is beginning to show signs of recovery, but we know that austerity will
continue in the coming years and Wiltshire Council, like every other public
sector organisation in the country, is going to have to continue to play its
part in making savings and prioritising its spending.
We know our funding allocation from central
government will continue to reduce but the bigger challenge is how we can continue
to deliver services while the demand in some of the key services keeps growing.
To do this, we have to continue to find innovative
ways to work effectively, and we will have to make some difficult decisions
about how we spend the money we have. Let’s be clear – we are not going to be
able to make everyone happy. But what we must do is ensure that we deliver our
priorities; in particular supporting our most vulnerable children and adults.
Devolution is
going to play a big part in shaping the new world, and an important part of my
role as leader of Wiltshire Council is to make sure we try and get a good deal
from the devolution agenda. As I have said before, it is about empowering local
communities and encouraging greater co-working with our public sector partners
so that we agree a shared vision for Wiltshire and work together towards
achieving it.
I understand
that some people are nervous about the idea of devolution. But if the
Government devolves more to local authorities we can then do even more to
improve the quality of life for Wiltshire’s residents and businesses.
Although we face many challenges this year – as we
do every year – 2016 promises to be a truly memorable year both in terms of a
huge programme of investment and a number of key events.
In particular, I am very much looking forward to
the celebrations that will surround the Queen’s 90th birthday. There
will be a giant street party on The Mall in June, and communities across the
nation will be encouraged to have their own parties. I am confident that our
communities will once again do Wiltshire proud as they get involved and deliver
events to wish Her Majesty a very happy birthday.
In preparation for the street parties we will be encouraging
all local areas to participate in the Clean for the Queen tidy up. Our area
boards will be supported to work with local community groups, of all ages, to get
involved in clean up events.
This is also an Olympic year and I am delighted to
see the return of our hugely successful Big Pledge initiative, which this year
will focus on sports challenges in honour of the Olympics and to encourage
people to get more active and to improve their general health and wellbeing.
Those taking part will be encouraged to take their own steps on “the road to
Rio” whether it be walking, swimming, running or rowing. I will talk more about
this challenge in future blogs.
