COUNCIL bosses fear a £11million deficit by the end of the year unless the government agrees to provide extra funding.

The estimated deficit is entirely down to the Covid-19 pandemic which has left the council spending millions on extra support for residents while also reducing income through council tax and business rates.

Deputy council leader, councillor Ron Woodley, said it means the authority has some “difficult choices” to make when they set the budget for 2021.

He said: “We have a meeting next week to talk about finances and next year’s budget but at the moment we are looking at an £11million deficit between revenue and expenditure by year end.

“We are still hoping the Government will make good on their promises in terms of supplying sufficient funds to reduce the deficit as this is entirely down to coronavirus.

“Looking to the budget next year, we will need to make difficult decisions on what impact the £11million will have, such as will it reduce our reserves to a level that makes them impractical.”

The £11million estimate is an increase from £9.5million previously forecast in council reports in June. Overall the pandemic is estimated to have cost between £15million and £20million.

Mr Woodley added: “Right now the Government keeps talking about changing things in local government but all it is doing is bringing extra costs.

“What we need to do right now is look at how to save and legitimately pay for local services, we still don’t know the full impact this is going to have on adult social services or children’s services.

“Instead of tinkering with local government and changing things, they need to look at how we can support residents now.”

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) published a report on Wednesday suggesting the pandemic has caused a council funding crisis.

The institute fears councils will either use their reserves or cut spending on services.