Would you sacrifice grass-cutting to save Aberdeen Central Library? Or could you live with arts cuts if it means having your bins collected?
Would you pay more in fees if it meant saving swimming pools?
These are just some of the imponderables Granite City residents are now facing.
People are being urged to have their say on how Aberdeen will look in the years to come.
The council is warning residents that painful cuts are almost inevitable as difficult decisions are made to help balance the books.
Before those tough choices are made, higher-ups want to know what matters most to Aberdonians – and more than a thousand have already taken part in the first fortnight.
Our Aberdeen budget guide explains the process…
First things first, why is the council doing this?
Things are so bleak that the local authority is ripping up the rule book when it comes to setting the budget, taking the unprecedented step of letting residents know months in advance just what is at stake.
The idea was formed following a fiery budget process earlier this year.
Scores of residents felt blindsided by some of the controversial cuts – with many launching campaigns to protect at-risk pools and libraries.
Months of angst followed, with the threat of court action still looming over the local authority.
The findings of this huge public exercise will be used as elected members weigh up what to cut and what to keep next year.
How can I take part?
A dedicated website has been set up, illustrating the council’s current spend in 17 areas.
You, while taking on the role of a council spending chief, have a total of 100 points to award across those areas as you see fit.
Don’t worry if you don’t understand some of the jargon – you can click on titles like “support and corporate services” and a box appears to tell you what that actually means.
People are encouraged to have a good read of them all before dishing out points.
What if I want to give all of my points to help secure a single service?
That sort of single-mindedness won’t be allowed.
No matter how much you might personally prize pothole repairs, or how strongly you feel about gritting, you can still only award a limited score.
The points are broken up into marks of 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25.
You could opt to give just four important services 25 points each, or you could spread support around with some lower figures.
One important note: for the submission to be valid you must use up all 100.
Do I have to live in Aberdeen?
No, you don’t, but it’s of course aimed at residents.
It asks people to state the city area they live, which helps provide information about priorities in different parts of Aberdeen.
Council chiefs are wary of the data protection implications it could entail if they asked everyone for their names and addresses.
How many people does the council hope will take part?
Past public consultation exercises, on the beach and city centre, attracted about 8,000 respondents.
Bosses will be pleased if they can match that. The more who take part, the better informed decision-makers will be.
What if people don’t have the internet?
Sessions will be staged in community venues during the four-week period, for those unable to participate online.
And forms were printed in the Friday, June 30, editions of both the Press and Journal and Evening Express for readers who wish to take part.
It came with a version of our Aberdeen budget guide, spelling out the process.
People can also take part at city libraries, and the customer service centre at Marischal College – where paper copies are also available.
What does the council spend the most money on?
For 2023/24, the authority has plotted out a budget of £567.6 million.
The highest spend is on education, with more than £200m going towards primary and secondary schools and nurseries. That sum also includes the cost of transport and meals.
The second biggest budget is for adult social care, at £120m.
At the opposite end of the spending spectrum, £3.2m is devoted to libraries, £5.8m to parks, open spaces and bereavement services and £8.1m to arts, culture and sports.
What will happen next?
Finance chiefs will pore over the findings when the consultation closes on July 31.
They will prepare a report outlining what the people want, which will be debated by councillors.
Then the next stage will be launched…
And this is where things will get very interesting.
At this point, Aberdeen residents will be presented with a more advanced “budget calculator” as they guide councillors on the Aberdeen budget.
This calculator will list all the individual options at risk, and what that cut could mean.
But will it make any difference?
Time will tell.
Top brass are keen to stress that the exercise has been arranged purely to make sure our elected decision-makers are equipped with the best information possible when doing their sums in the first few months of 2024.
While the findings may not be taken as gospel, would many councillors be willing to surrender their popularity by ignoring what the people want?
Speaking as the halfway point neared, council co-leader Ian Yuill thanked all those who had taken part.
He said: “The council budget affects everyone.
“That is especially true during a time when councils across Scotland face huge financial pressure and have to make some very difficult decisions.
“It’s vitally important that the city council hears from as many residents as possible about what they believe should be the spending priorities.”
Have your say using the council’s budget calculator here.
