It is perhaps a sign of the impact of unrelenting Government austerity measures on the psyche of council leaders that anything other than another year of cuts is viewed as a win.
The fact that this is a real terms increase on last year is to be celebrated, though the majority of that extra funding is from local tax payers.
Celebrations may appear muted. It must be remembered that this increase still leaves local government with a 23% real term reduction in funding since 2010* whilst demand for care services have increased. Child Protection Assessments have more than doubled since 2010** and we are all aware of the crisis in adult social care.
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