AN ACTION plan to address the crushing financial challenges facing Clackmannanshire Council, will be debated by elected members tomorrow (Thursday, March 8).

Audit Scotland, an independent body, published an assessment of how the local authority is performing in relation to its duty to deliver best value earlier this year.

As previously reported by the Advertiser, this led to public spending watchdog the Accounts Commission issuing a “wake-up call” over its “acute” financial position.

The Best Value Assurance Report was presented to councillors last month and they moved to come up with an “action plan” to take forward with the recommendations from Audit Scotland.

They included councillors and officers building on constructive working relationships for combined leadership; the consideration of savings options; and the development of working relationships with planning partners.

It also suggested the council make use of external assistance to support improvement.

The paper to come before elected members at Kilncraigs for approval outlines a range of measures that will be taken to meet these objectives.

It includes a whole organisation redesign and agreement of service functions, along with a revised management structure and an update to the workforce strategy.

It suggests building on community engagement from the budget consultation to “to establish regular discussions with communities on financial sustainability” and aims to facilitate applications for asset transfer and “actively supports community empowerment”.

The plan also highlights taking the city deal initiative forward, new governance arrangements for community planning, and the commission of an external expert report on “core funding needs of the council”.