Stockport council has said there is 'deep concern' about the future as mounting costs are putting its finances under severe strain.

The town hall is facing a £75m funding gap across the next five years and needs to make cuts and hike charges to keep its head above water.

This year alone, the Lib Dem-controlled council has had to find £20m to balance the books in its budget, which will be set at a total of £356m for the year. It comes as the costs of providing hundreds of services continues to climb.

Leaders at Stockport town hall have slammed the government over the 'fairer funding' review which they say has 'exacerbated' the borough's situation through a lack of support. The council said it is getting a funding increase of £26m by 2028/29, an amount it says is far from enough to cover the pressures it is under, and less than what other councils are getting.

A council report stated: 'We are deeply concerned about the adverse impact the settlement will have on Stockport residents and businesses.'

There was further worry about Stockport missing out on the government's Recovery Grant, a scheme which dished out £600m to councils across the country last year.

What does it all mean for Stopfordians and their money?

Bridgefield Street in Stockport town centre (Image - Leslie Kerwin)

The council has proposed a council tax increase of 4.99 per cent, adding more than £100 to annual bills for households in the band D council tax bracket. This is made up of a 2.99pc general council tax increase alongside a 2pc increase for adult social care costs.

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Stockport council has also proposed a review of parking charges in the town centre in a bid to save £500,000. This could see prices increase, and has caused alarm among residents and traders who warned it could damage the town's regeneration efforts.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service about the parking increases last week, 82-year-old resident, Jack Hembrough said: "I think it's terrible, we pay enough as it is. It could put people off from coming to Stockport, I really do think so, especially if they keep charging people more and more to park."

Cllr Grace Baynham, the cabinet member for transport, responded at the time: "We understand any change can raise questions, and we'll continue to make sure residents and visitors have clear, fair and consistent parking options when they visit our town centre."

Stockport council provides more than 800 services across the borough, but its departments are also having to make 'efficiency savings' to chip in towards plugging its £20m deficit this year. Some of the changes are set to hit the council's staff, with £1.5m of savings needed from its corporate and support services.

A report explained: 'These proposals will impact small numbers of our workforce and wherever possible this will be achieved through natural turnover.'

The changes come off the back of a previous council tax increase last year by 4.99pc, and the introduction of a controversial £59 annual charge for garden waste collections. There have also been new charges brought in at car parks which used to be free to use.

How has the council responded?

Stockport town hall (Image - Leslie Kerwin)

There's major concern in the corridors of power at Stockport town hall about the situation. The council had admitted it is 'being pushed ever closer to needing to ask government for exceptional financial support.'

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Lobbying efforts by the council to the government over funding appear to have failed. Stockport council leader Mark Roberts made an urgent appeal to the government in January, in a letter which asked why Stockport is getting a '7.49 per cent' increase in cash by 2028/29 compared to a '15.1pc' increase on average in England.

He added in the letter: 'This means Stockport receives less than half the increase of councils facing similar demands and budget pressures.'

But at the council's cabinet meeting on February 10, Stockport council's deputy leader Jilly Julian announced bad news, saying: "I am really, really gutted and disappointed that the lobbying efforts of myself, the leader, all of you, colleagues from around the chamber, from our MPs, all three of them, through the council's official responses to the settlement, haven't led to an uplift in the final position that we're left with."

Cllr Julian added: "We need government to look at the situation that Stockport's been left in as a result of this settlement, and as I've said multiple times, yes you need to think about how you're slicing the pie, but we just need a bigger pie, we need more funding to be made available for local authorities."

Council leader Mark Roberts said at the meeting: "I am thoroughly disappointed that that lobbying and all of those efforts seems to have landed on deaf ears in government. We should be under no illusions here in Stockport that some of the difficult decisions that are going to be needed looking to the future are directly as a result of decisions and choices being taken in Westminster, and that focus that there is on London boroughs and the south."

Councillors in Stockport will vote on its budget plans on February 26.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government previously said: "We're making almost £78 billion available for councils next year – the biggest increase in local government funding in years – including £356.1m for Stockport.

"This will help Stockport deliver the high-quality services that local residents desperately need and the certainty that councils need to plan ahead."

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