Lambeth Council staff are set to lose their jobs in the coming years as plans for a £3 million restructure are in the works.  

Looking at the council’s financial planning report on Monday (December 14), cabinet approved proposals for more than £15 million in extra cuts over the next four years (2021 -2025).  

This is added to the previously agreed cuts of £28 million from 2020 to 2024. 

The council is also forecasting an overspend of £43.2 million this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, with significant pressures in residents services, adult social care, and children’s services. 

Government funding has not covered the whole sum, leaving a gap of £10 million.  

Officers have laid out best case and worse-case scenarios related to Covid-19.  

“The gap in best case C-19 is £13.435 million, further adverse movements are expected under worst case C-19 which takes the gap to £26.621 million,” according to the report.  

Redundancies are on the cards, with a £3.1 million ‘whole council structure review and redesign’, a £170,000 cut to education staff, a £150,000 cut to the facilities management team, a £147,000 cut to customer service staff, a £200,000 cut to the finance team, and a £42,000 cut to payroll team.  

Concerns were raised by the overview and scrutiny committee over jobs losses.  

Chair Councillor Liz Atkins said: “We fear that the council restructure could mean the loss of staff experience and expertise and have an adverse effect on service delivery and on low paid and Black, Asian and ethnic minority staff. 

“That’s why we urge you consult with and empower staff throughout the review process, both via the trade unions and directly,” she said.  

The committee also asked for more effort to reduce the council’s reliance on agency staff, and when tendering contracts, in-house options should be considered.  

The council is planning to make £4.3 million over four years through parking fees and clamping down on illegal driving, though it admits that income is based on people’s behaviour which is hard to predict.  

Cllr Atkins said: “The committee is concerned about the heavy reliance on income generation, particularly in residents services.  

“Whether this is achievable, and what this might mean for residents who are unable to afford services because of increased fees and charges.” 

The council is also planning to increase the use of community infrastructure levies (CIL), money paid by developers to mitigate the impact of development, to cover staffing costs.  

A couple of Green councillors said the accounts are made “unnecessarily complicated”, while Cllr Scott Ainsley, deputy leader of the opposition, asked for more transparency around CIL. 

He also urged better contract management and warned against a heavy digital focus on services, giving an example of a resident left without heating for days who was unable to get through on the phone.  

The cabinet member for finance and performance, Cllr Andy Wilson, said he shared some anxiety around the reliance on income generation.  

“On the other hand, we want to protect services for the most vulnerable and when there is an opportunity for us to fund services by generating income rather than cutting back on a service we’re going to take that opportunity on every occasion. 

“[In terms of staff restructure] – there was a commitment from officers to come back to scrutiny, this isn’t something that’s going to happen in-year, it was a proposal for 18 months down the line,” he said.  

Cllr Wilson also said that work has been going on to break down the details on CIL. 

Presenting the report to cabinet, he said: “Many councils will be facing a much more perilous situation with their finances, but due to our prudent financial management we’ll be able to absorb the budget deficit in the medium term through a mixture of income generation, savings, and some use of reserves.”