Tough decisions are ahead for Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) which faces a deficit of up to £5.1m by 2022.

Government savings mean it is now inevitable some services will be cut according to the council’s leader and while residents will be consulted, a plan for this will already be in place.

From next year the money the government gives MBC – £870,000 this year – will be axed, meaning it will have to fund itself.

It will keep 100% of business rates from 2020 but due to the redistribution system will give away at least £1.5m a year.

As a result MBC faces a deficit of between £3.4m and £5.1m, with a mid point of £4.2m chosen for savings required. Potential cuts of £2.9m have already been identified, leaving a £1.3m sized hole.

That’s on top of £3m of savings already proposed in this year’s budget, which MBC will receive a £394,000 grant to help implement.

A four-year strategy for savings, known as an Efficiency Plan, will go to full council on Wednesday, September 21, more than a week before the public consultation is opened, and will be presented to the government in mid October.

But Mark Green, director of finance and business improvement and author of the plan, says it is only an indication of savings and the public are being consulted ahead of next year’s budget when real decisions will be made.

The authority has already rated its services according to whether they are essential, important, useful or not essential and the standard of those, both current and potential, has been classed as gold, silver or bronze.

Cllr Fran Wilson, leader of MBC, said: “Since 2010 we have been forced to make significant changes due to cuts in government funding. We have worked hard to protect front-line services as much as possible.

“This has become harder each year and it is now inevitable some services will be reduced over the next four years. It’s essential residents play an active role in this process.”

As part of the consultation road shows will be arranged and residents will also be able to view the plan on the council’s website.

MBC has used an assessment called MoSCoW (must/should/could/won’t) assessment in order to work out the services which are essential and the ones it could do without.

It has assessed 21 services as essential. These include community safety, street cleansing and dealing with homelessness and cost the council £13.3m a year.

Five of these services generate net revenue.

Twenty-six services are judged to be important and it would harm the council if they were axed. These cost £5.4m and seven of them make money.

Categories include grounds maintenance, Lockmeadow market and traffic management.

Currently only just two services – the MBS Support Crew, which provides help with events and in the wake of floods, and Leisure Services Other, which organises the town’s Christmas lights – are considered to be useful but not essential.

These services actually make MBC £20,000.

No services are yet in line to be axed, however.