Council unveils budget for 2009/10

LIVERPOOL has unveiled its budget for the next financial year.  The proposals; which will see council tax bills in 2009/10 increase by 4.45% or 71p per week for most residents; it includes an extra £4.8 million of investment to improve key services and create safer neighbourhoods.

The extra funds include:-

• An additional £2.5 million on culture (over and above what was spent before the city won Capital of Culture) to build on the achievements of 2008

• £1 million in resources to successfully deliver Building Schools for the Future, which will see every secondary school in the city replaced over the next few years

• £318,000 to improve housing and neighbourhood services

• £70,000 to create a round-the-clock dog warden service and the creation of a new integrated enforcement team to tackle eyesores, litter, dumping and graffiti

• £100,000 to force property owners to clean up derelict sites and bring properties back into use

City Council leader Warren Bradley said:- “We have worked hard this year to produce a budget which addresses the needs of the city and is at a level which is affordable for residents.  We consulted widely on this year’s budget and have made sure that our spending is linked to people’s priorities.   This budget will allow us to continue improving life for people in Liverpool – we are making improvements in educational attainment, tackling crime and disorder, and increasing the number of residents cared for by social services.  “We have just had a terrific year in the spotlight as Capital of Culture, so are committing significant extra investment to build on our achievements.  Never before has Liverpool set its budget so early, and that is down to extremely good financial management and planning.”

Community safety was identified as the number 1 priority of local people during the consultation, so the council has reflected that in its proposals.  Around £1 million is to be spent over the next 3 years strengthening the anti social behaviour unit and tackling problem families - including those who are members of gangs – through a Family Intervention Plus programme.  And a new integrated enforcement team will be created, tackling issues such as litter, dumping and graffiti.  There will also be additional activities on a Friday and Saturday night for young people, and £1.4 million will be spent developing youth and alternative education facilities in Anfield and Old Swan.

The city is creating business champions in all key council services to strengthen the relationship with local firms.  There will also be a pilot programme through Liverpool Vision to help businesses understand the challenges they are likely to face through the credit crunch.  And the city will continue to offer free access to its Lifestyles fitness centres for under 17's and over 60's.

Deputy leader and executive member for finance, Councillor Flo Clucas, said:- “We have overhauled our systems this year to make sure that every single penny counts and is accounted for.  Across the council, we have examined every line of the budget and tracked it back to make sure it fits in with our priorities and aims.  And we have taken into account the views of local people - whose money we are charged with spending – when putting together this year’s proposals.  The result is a spending plan which accurately reflects the needs and wishes of the community.”

The proposals will also see the council’s reserves boosted by an additional £4 million, taking the amount set aside for contingencies to £15 million.  The budget includes £13.7 million in efficiency savings which will not impact on front line services, as well as £4.4 million of service reductions.  The level of council tax does not include the precepts and levies which are set by the fire, police and transport authorities, as they have not yet been decided.  The budget for 2009/10 will be considered at a full meeting of the city council on 28 January 2009. 

50 recorded child sex offences a day

CHILDREN were the victims of sex offences on more than 20,000 occasions recorded by police in England and Wales last year, NSPCC research reveals.    But you do have to ask, are starting to get to bogged down with figures?   Last week the national media reported a "shocking new trend" in bullying when they revealed with figures showing that more than 3,000 children were suspended from school for sexual misconduct.  So now children as 5 year olds becoming sex offenders due to ststistics?

According to statistics obtained by the NSPCC from 42 police forces show that in nearly 1 in 4 cases (4,984) the victims were 10 or younger.  According to statistics provided by Merseyside Police, last year 462 victims of sex offences were aged under 18, while 142 of these were 10 years old or under. 

Over 800 recorded offences involved children aged 4 and under – not even old enough to go to primary school.  In 163 cases the victims were infants aged just 1 and 2 and more than 33% (7,622) were aged 13 to 15.  The statistics show there were 20,758 under-18s recorded by police as victims of sex crimes, including rape, gross indecency and incest.  The number of offences recorded against girls was 6 times higher than the number against boys.

The Home Office gathers data from police forces for its annual crime report, which shows there was a total of 53,540 for all sexual offences in 2007 to 2008.  This report only lists broad age ranges as defined by the recorded offence, such as ‘sexual assault on a female child under 13’, or ‘sexual assault on a male aged 13 and over’. 

The NSPCC says that by mixing adult and children’s statistics the Home Office reporting does not provide a clear picture of the number of child victims.  Detailed age breakdowns of victims are collected by police, but are not passed on to the Home Office.

The NSPCC is now calling on the UK Government to collect and publish annual data from police forces showing the number and ages of victims, and to clearly link this with the number of convictions, and other penalties, resulting from the recorded offences. 

The NSPCC wants the UK Government to use this data as the basis of an improved national strategy to prevent abuse and develop local services, such as the NSPCC’s Fresh Start, which is funded by The Children’s Charity for the good of all children, to treat child victims through the Home Office’s cross Government action plan on sexual violence.  Details of offenders and offences are kept by the forces, but not all have statistics showing what happened after the crimes were reported.

NSPCC director of public policy Phillip Noyes said:- “These shocking figures reveal just how young many of the reported victims of sex abuse are, with even 1-year-olds being at risk, although the highest numbers of offences were against children in their early teens.  It’s a grim picture but this is only a snapshot, as our research indicates there are many more abused children whose suffering never comes to light.  Clearly, very young children who are sexually abused can’t speak out and it’s currently very difficult to get a clear understanding of how many child sex abuse victims there are.  If we are able to get these details every year it will start to build a more accurate picture of what is happening and we can make more concerted efforts to protect children.”

In their responses to a Freedom of Information request by the NSPCC some forces said not all details were readily available and to retrieve them would require hundreds of files to be manually searched, resulting in prohibitive cost.  There were outcomes on offenders which came in the form of cautions, charges, detected offences, reprimands and summonses.  Some of these outcomes could include double-counting by the police.

The most worrying figure the the NSPCC have picked up on is that just over 1,000 offences by young people were recorded   So the NSPCC’s is now call for consistent assessment and treatment of young people who sexually harm other children.

The NSPCC runs 36 projects across the UK working with children who have been sexually abused, including Fresh Start.