Falkirk school crossing patrols and bus subsidies under review to save cash

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Axing nine school crossing patrols and changing the criteria for free school transport are among several money-saving measures that a new budget strategy has suggested for Falkirk Council.Falkirk councillors heard today (Tuesday) that "everything has to be on the table" as they agreed to look at making a series of changes that could save more than £500,000 in total.

Zero Based Budgeting (ZBB) is often used by large corporation to help them look at their finances from scratch and challenge spending that isn't necessary.

Members of Falkirk Council were told that it can often highlight areas where councils spend money over and above their statutory requirements.SNP Councillor Paul Garner, the council's economic development spokesperson, said: "We know that savings from school crossing patrols, bus subsidies and school transport will be very difficult for us to agree - but the starting point is to gather the facts and have a grown-up discussion about the best way forward."A local ZBB transport project revealed that nine school crossing patrols are currently provided that are well above national guidelines, which take into account the volume of traffic and number of children.Councillors were told that local guidelines are "significantly more generous" and of the 45 school crossing patrols provided, nine are in excess of the national criteria.

Withdrawing all nine would mean a saving for the council of approximately £32,000 per annum.Councillors said they would need to consider the implications of any report carefully, especially with regard to road safety - but they did agree to look at the possibility of making the cuts.