Insider Media Limited

Nottingham City Council has said that 370 jobs are likely to be axed from its workforce over the next year after it was told that its annual budget would be slashed by more than £33m. Deputy leader of the council Graham Chapman said that the government-imposed cuts were “potentially devastating”.

Last month, the government said that the council’s budget would be cut by 8.44 per cent next year. However, because of changes to the way the settlement was presented, and taking into account in-year cuts imposed by the government in its Emergency Budget in June, the real cut in the council's funding from government is £60m. The city council said that is was “among the hardest hit” by the government cuts.

Despite safeguarding several community schemes, the council confirmed that its Building Schools for the Future funding would be withdrawn, and its Meadows PFI scheme would also lose its £200m investment following the announcement.

Chapman said: "I'm concerned about the potential for these cuts to impact on Nottingham's local economy, with private sector jobs reliant on a strong public sector and the knock-on effect on inward investment of losing large projects such as Building Schools for the Future. However, we remain ambitious for the city and will do all we can with private sector partners to ensure the local economy remains buoyant and continues to provide jobs for local people."