A BLACKHOLE in Wiltshire Council’s finances has increased – partly due to the authority facing increased pressures in adult and social care services.

The council is required to deliver a balanced budget, but a previously predicted overspend of £6.5 million has now jumped up to £6.6 million after just three months.

The £6.6 million figure represents 1.3% of the total £527 million budget and is a forecast, not an actual overspend.

Council chiefs previously dipped into its reserves in September to try and bridge the gap, and the authority says it will “rigorously control costs” and make savings over the coming months to ensure the budget is balanced at the end of the financial year.

The main reason for the overspend has been laid at the feet of an increase in its adult and social care services.

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It says pressures are being driven by the complexity of the support required by people, with inflation and recent changes to employers National Insurance rates and thresholds have created additional challenges and impact.

This can be particularly felt in adult social care, the council has said, as this affects short term and emergency contracts that occasionally need to be set up at short notice, as well as existing long-term agreements.

To combat these pressures, the council has proposed a range of cost mitigation measures.

This includes restricting non-essential and discretionary spending, utilising earmarked reserves designated to support adult social care, including £84,000 from the Latent Demand Reserve, £90,000 from the Streamlining Adult Social Care Grant Reserve and £400,000 from the Public Health Grant Reserve.

“The cost pressures in adult social care are not being driven by a rise in the number of people receiving adult care funded support so demonstrating the council’s approach in this service is working,” a spokesperson said.

“It is the complexity of needs that has increased, the meeting of which is more expensive. This includes young people transitioning from children’s services, people with autism and learning disabilities, and older adults with dementia and other health conditions.”

Children’s services are also said to be under pressure, as despite the number of children in the council’s care remains below that of its statistical neighbours, it exceeds the council’s original budgeted figure.

As of September 2025, there were 499 children in care, compared to a budgeted figure of 453.

Councillor Ian Thorn, Wiltshire Council leader, said forecasted overspending is not acceptable, and must be rectified by “determined and vigorous” action.

He said: “A combination of issues such as continued high inflation and national insurance contributions create a perfect storm of tough financial pressure in areas where these key care services need to be regularly procured and fully staffed.

“Even though the majority of our financial challenges are being felt across specific areas, we work as one council and one team of cabinet and officers at Wiltshire.

“We are actively reviewing savings plans, strengthening cost controls, challenging expenditure as to whether it is really necessary, staying very closely engaged with the areas facing the greatest pressure and ensuring our financial forecasting is as accurate as it can be right across the whole organisation.

“While the challenges we face are mirrored by councils throughout the country, the significant actions we are taking reflect our determination to deliver real value for money, long-term financial sustainability and protect vital services for our communities.

“During our recent public consultation events on next year’s budget, colleagues and I have been heartened by the really interesting and constructive conversations we’ve had with so many residents and the large numbers also participating online.

“It is clear that residents recognise the challenges we face and the tough choices that will have to be made. So, residents’ feedback on their priorities and perspective on what is important to them is really important.

“So are the conversations we have had at staff drop-in sessions where council colleagues have put forward their ideas to save money, create greater efficiencies and generate extra cash. All these ideas are very welcome, so we will look at them, seek out good practices from others and build positive partnerships to find innovative and creative solutions to meet the challenges we face.”

The authority said itself a saving target of around £15 million in 2025/26 – but just around £3.4m of the savings have been made, with another £7.8m expected to be saved by the end of the year.

People still have time to provide their feedback and ideas on the upcoming 26/27 budget by completing a short survey which can be found here. The survey closes on Friday (November 7).

The council’s quarter two budget position will be formally presented at the cabinet meeting next Tuesday (November 11).

The agenda and reports can be found at https://cms.wiltshire.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=141&MId=15935