Almost £11m of cuts to council services are being planned by the council with council taxpayers facing a five per cent hike in bills from next April.

The council has revealed its indicative cuts requirement for the year 2024/25 prior to a more detailed proposed budget being put together for public consultation.

A document to be put before the council’s Labour run cabinet next Monday shows a requirement to cut £10.9m from the council’s budget over the year April 2024 to March 2025.

More details of where the £10.9m will be cut from will be published before a further meeting on December 3.

One of the assumptions in the current plan is a rise of 2.99 per cent in the general council tax levy as well as a further two per cent rise on top of that which is ringfenced to help pay for adult social care.

The document states the original budget gap for 24/25 had risen from a previous forecast of £21.7m to £37.4m, largely due to inflation pressures.

To mitigate that budget gap, the council is using £10m of cash reserves to prevent the need for even more cuts, but they say "this deferral cannot continue indefinitely".

Other positive inflows which close the budget gap include a business rates re-evaluation which is expected to bring in £12.2m, the continuation of grants giving a benefit of £2.9m and a £1.4m boost in expected council tax revenue.

That leaves the current forecast budget gap of £10.9m which will need to be cut from current council operations and services.

A spokesperson for Bolton Council said: “This is a difficult time for councils across the country with additional financial pressures to come, especially with the rising cost of social care for vulnerable children and adults.

“In this context, the proposed 2024/25 budget sets out plans to make £10.9m of cuts across different council departments, along with a below-inflation increase in council tax which includes a proposed two per cent increase in the adult social care precept, ring-fenced funding for the most vulnerable in our community.

“Overall, we believe this budget strikes the right balance to protect the services we all rely on.

“However, no final decision has been made and the proposed budget will now be subject to a full public consultation.

“It is essential that as many people as possible have their say when the consultation opens, and this feedback will influence the final decision.”