Tell us how our savings proposals impact you

Saving: £80,000 in total.

Grass would still be cut in rural verges to retain visibility for motorists. However, grass in built up areas near housing would be cut three times a year instead of the current 12 times a year.

Saving: £300,000 in total.

Work would still be done to keep the buildings safe and secure only.

Customers would get pre-loaded charge cards for crisis and welfare grants, making it easier for them to access funds while also cutting admin and debt recovery costs for the council.

Overtime, agency and fixed term contracts to be reviewed to make better use of staff and cut costs by, for example, recruiting for more permanent posts rather than relying on fixed-term contracts.

Improve the functionality of online business support systems to streamline processes and reduce manual intervention. 

The review is looking at making better use of joint procurement arrangements with peers in Lothians and Scotland when buying digital goods or services to get best value for money and improve bulk buying.  A cost benefit analysis is underway on Artificial Intelligence (AI) transcription services that instantly type and summarise interactions, saving time and money. Work is also being done on introducing Microsoft co-pilot licences as part of the Microsoft 365 project to reduce time reading, note taking etc. 

Software licences would be reviewed to make sure only required licences are bought and maintained. Anti-virus software would also be reviewed and replaced as part of the Microsoft 365 projects, to realise a cost saving.

Savings would come from extending the lifespan of our digital assets and getting income from securely disposing of old and unused digital assets.

Charge a commercial rate for other services in the council to use sport and leisure facilities.

Turn the Gorebridge Leisure Centre into a hub incorporating Gorebridge Library and Birkenside Pavilion as well as the existing leisure facilities and meeting rooms. 

Stop weekend cleaning at our five hub buildings at Danderhall, Loanhead, Lasswade, Newbattle and the Penicuik Centre. Sport and leisure staff would do minimal tasks like emptying buckets and cleaning toilets. This would save approximately 100 hours of cleaning per week.

Stop the summer clean in our schools, saving approximately 3000 hours of cleaning per year.

Half the cleaning hours on a Friday in the schools, saving approximately 180 hours per week.