Westminster council underspends social care budget by £5.6m

Labour councillor labels Westminster ‘meanest council in Britain’ for cuts to adult services

Westminster city council underspent its adult social care budget for the last financial year by £5.6m and has reduced services for some of the most vulnerable people in the borough, the council’s Labour group claims.

Paul Dimoldenberg, the leader of the Labour group on the council, said that by reducing eligibility, some people are not getting the services previously provided by the local authority.

“Because of changes to eligibility criteria, only those with severe needs are now eligible,” Dimoldenberg told the social care network.

“It will mean vulnerable people are not getting a service until they are in serious need and it will have a serious long-term impact on older people.”

Westminster council’s £5.6m underspend on adult social care last year is £1.2m more than reported to the council’s audit and performance committee in March. The figures are included in a report to the council’s cabinet meeting on 25 June.

Overall the council report says that Westminster has underspent its budget by £9.3m, adding to the £60m of cuts already implemented across the borough.

In addition to the underspend on social care, the council has underspent on housing by £2m and on children’s services by £0.8m.

Dimoldenberg said: “Westminster Conservatives are running the meanest council in Britain and they should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves at a time when the most vulnerable are bearing the brunt of the government’s cuts to services and jobs.”

Philippa Roe, the leader of Westminster council, said: “In adult services, we have seen a substantial reduction in spend as a result of more competitive commissioning of services.

“Our focus has firmly remained on protecting frontline services and investing in long-term care provision, whilst generating efficiency savings in areas such as administration.”

Linda Perks, Unison’s head of Greater London, said: “Westminster city council has initiated massive spending cuts over the past two years. Huge numbers of professional staff have been made redundant as a result.

“It is a disgrace that in this age of austerity the council is not spending to its limit to ensure that vital services are maintained for local people.”