RESIDENTS are being invited  to have their say on proposals that are aiming to reduce Cotswold District Council's running costs without the need for us to cut services.

The council  is working with the local authorities in  Cheltenham, Forest of Dean and West Oxfordshire on the 2020 Vision Programme which is aiming to reduce the cost of providing services through sharing management and staff and making better use of IT.

It is also trying to maintain a range of services that it currently  provides and  retain its own distinct identity.

Elected Cotswold District Councillors would continue to decide what is best for the residents they serve, and also ensure continuing local access to services.

As a result of the work on 2020 Vision so far, the partner councils will be building on their shared HR, finance and payroll shared service which has already been established, and are proposing initially, that  services,  information Technology, Building Control and Legal.

 Detailed proposals, which include sharing these services, will be going to each council in September and October this year.

And before those meetings take place, the Councils would like to hear the views of local residents.

Lynden Stowe,  leader of Cotswold District Council, said: “We already have good links with the 2020 partner councils through a range of joint working initiatives, which have proven to be very successful. This includes the sharing of a finance, procurement and Human Resources service and associated IT system for the past three years, which is working well. We feel that the time is now right to strengthen our ties by building on these type of arrangements.

“We have looked at other ways to make savings including increasing council tax, cutting services, forming a unitary authority and buying services from the private sector. We have discounted all of those options because we think the 2020 Vision model is the best solution as it will retain a full range of services and still allow us to make our own decisions on the priorities relevant to this District.

“We are now encouraging the local community to let us know what they think about the proposal to share services. We believe that this is the only way to continue providing our current range of services at a time when the money we receive from Government is reducing while our running costs are increasing.”

To have your say email feedback@2020partnership.uk , or write to  Rachael Orchard, 2020 Vision Office, Cotswold District Council, Trinity Road, Cirencester, GL7 1PX.

The deadline for comments is Tuesday, September 15 2015.