Tell us how our savings proposals impact you

Saving: £65,000 in total

The council would stop all funding and support for Christmas lights.

Community groups would be responsible for setting up and maintaining Christmas lights annually in their areas or they could elect to keep the lights in place.

Saving: £65,000 in total.

Staff help at local events and galas by putting up and taking down marquees, staging, temporary fencing, generators and flower troughs – all provided by the council. Council support also includes picking up and clearing away litter.

Saving: £557,000 in total.

This funding pays for two full-time equivalent Police Scotland sergeants and 12 full-time equivalent Police Scotland constables. The MCAT team is in addition to existing Police Scotland staff. The team's focus is on improving the quality of life for communities by preventing anti-social behaviour and crime.

Saving: £364,000 in total.

The council would stop funding HcL. HcL provides a Dial-a-Ride service, which transports people who can't use mainstream bus services because of a disability, and Dial-a-Bus services offering scheduled trips to shopping locations for the same client group.

Funding would also stop for services provided by Lothian Community Transport Services (LCTS). LCTS runs transport for voluntary and disabled user groups. They also provide community bus scheduled services in areas not served by mainstream operators. 

The council provides and maintains two vehicles to LCTS and one vehicle to HcL. LCTS provide a Midas driver training service at a discounted rate to the council.

Saving: £159,000 in total.

This proposal would see the removal of grants that currently support commercial bus services. As a consequence the bus providers may remove the services in part or in entirety. A lead in notice period of 6 months has been included for contract withdrawal in 2025/26. Contributions are to cross boundary services paid to East Lothian Council and Scottish Borders Council and also the bus station charges. Ring & Go (approximately £26,000 last year) is also within the £159,000 saving.

Withdrawing funding directly impacts 101/102 bus station charges; 111 cross boundary service from Haddington to the Royal Infirmary; and the 51/52 cross border bus service from St Boswells, covering Fala, Pathhead, Edgehead, Dalkeith, Danderhall and going into Edinburgh City Centre.

Saving: £25,000 in total.

Stop all maintenance apart from occasional grass cutting.

Saving: £150,000

Remove all school crossing patrol guides, or agree an initial phase of removing guides where there are existing controlled crossings with mitigation measures for any further phase. The council currently provides school crossing guides to help children cross roads on their journey to and from school. This is a non-statutory service.

Stopping glass collections would reduce costs of operating collection vehicles and collection routes. Alternative community collection points would be provided.

Saving: £29,000 in total.

The saving would come from overhead revenue costs. Customers would be redirected to Stobhill Recycling Centre.

Saving: £73,000 in total

Roads would continue to be gritted outwith normal working hours. The saving would come from ending overtime payments to staff as gritting footpaths would start at 07.30am rather than the current 05.30am. 

Saving: £133,000

The proposal to stop active schools service will impact on the extra-curricular sports no longer being offered.

Saving: £1,200,000

Swimming pools, spas, gyms etc would close, impacting on health and wellbeing of service users.

This new proposal is to be defined and developed to deliver. Areas to be considered include disposing of pavilions,and looking at income generating opportunities for activities such as Padel, tennis, etc.

The council would look at further opportunities to charge for services. A review of fees and charges is undertaken annually and work is ongoing to identify where services that are not traditionally chargeable could be subject to charges or increased to generate an income for the council.

The council will look at the potential to retrofit photovoltaic panels on council buildings. The panels save energy bills and generate potential income by converting sunshine into electricity.