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Over half that money (£76.66 million) will be spent on ‘People Directorate’ services, which include adult social care, public health and children and family services. The council, which is legally required to balance the books each year, says it will have to save £3.7 million in 2021/22 but it will not make cuts that affect front-line services. The council could have increased council tax by a total of five per cent – but decided it does not need a three per cent increase to pay for adult social care. That’s because it has finished 2020/21 with £3.4 million to spare, as demand for expensive council-funded social care has dropped significantly due to a high number of Covid-19 care home deaths in West Berkshire. ....
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But the Conservatives running West Berkshire Council say they are confident the new offices will attract businesses. They want to develop the 27.5 acre Newbury industrial estate in phases, and planning consultants say up to 280 homes, 3,473sqm of office space and 5,400sqm of space for other businesses could be built there. Cllr Lee Dillon, leader of the West Berkshire Liberal Democrats, said the pandemic and the severe economic downturn could have a significant impact on demand for offices. He said Covid-19 “has been that catalyst for accelerating flexible working” and “home working is likely to significantly increase.” He added: “We often find during a recession, if you go through the cycles, companies retract, they take on less staff and they need less office space.” ....