Bracknell Forest Council (BFC) is predicted to overspend by £3.5 million by the end of the financial year.

A draft report outlining the performance of the authority in the first quarter of this financial year says the overspend is due to the increased price of looking after adults and children.

The draft report will be put to BFC’s Overview and Scrutiny Commission, which works to inspect the work of the executive and the overall council.

From April to June this year, variances to the approved budget amounting to approximately 440,000 have already been identified. This means that once included, the predicted overspend for the whole year could reach a potential of £3.556m.

The council has said this is an ‘unexpected position’ after many budgetary pressures were addressed last year.

However, authors highlighted: “It is primarily due to the scale of demand growth and unit price increases for both adult and children’s social care services, which are being mirrored in neighbouring authorities and across the country.”

Financial chiefs at BFC are considering what actions to take to ensure that the budget is not overspent by the end of the year. It is likely that enhanced spending control measures will be introduced ‘given the scale of the forecast overspend at this early stage in the year’.

This comes after BFC reported an overspend of £1.25 million last year – much of which was also spent on education and learning and adult social care.

Within the more than £500,000 extra spent in these areas, staffing for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and education transport were particularly high.

In adult social care there were increased costs in the number of costs and clients.

A report taken to the council’s executive in July said: “The council continues to face ongoing financial pressures and uncertainty due to delay in the introduction of a new funding system by central government.”

In March 2024, the authority joined a controversial government plan aimed at reducing its overspend on SEND children.

The ‘safety valve agreement’ requires the council to pay the government £16m over the next six years. In return, the former government promised to build two dedicated SEND schools, as well as putting more SEND children in mainstream schools.

The draft report will be put to BFC’s Overview and Scrutiny Commission in the upcoming meeting on Thursday, August 29. Members will discuss the report as well as come up with recommendations for the executive.