A progress report has shown that Hammersmith & Fulham, the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster City Council are on track to save £40m a year by 2015/16.
The savings will be made by combining services and management costs, helping to keep council tax bills in the three areas amongst the lowest in Britain, while protecting frontline services.
The Tri-borough councils are sharing £300m of services and effectively cutting management costs in half with 175 senior posts going.
The progress report – One Year On: Delivering our promise to improve lives and make public funds go further – reveals how 62 senior and middle management posts have already gone in the three areas that have been initially combined: Children’s Services, Adult Social and Libraries, equivalent to a 45 per cent reduction in senior and middle management.
Combined Environmental Services between the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) and Hammersmith & Fulham has resulted in seven management posts being lost, with two authorities now sharing a chief executive.
This financial year £7.7m of savings will be made across the three authorities, with the aim of £40m per annum eventually, between the three. This represents around 7.3% of Hammersmith and Fulham’s total net budget expenditure.
Cllr Sir Merrick Cockell, Leader of the RBKC, said: “It is up to other councils to decide whether combining services makes sense. Many have already gone down this route. We stand ready to share our learning and experience to help others make ends meet.“
Cllr Philippa Roe, Leader of Westminster City Council, said: “Sharing services is not just about reducing cost, important as that is in this age of austerity, it is about improving lives and innovation.”
To view the report, click here.