WEE County residents have just three weeks left to tell Clackmannanshire Council what they think of the money saving proposals outlined for the 2015-16 budget.

Communities can have their say on suggestions by taking part in the local authority’s public consultation which was launched before Christmas and ends on Monday, 9 February.

A budget booklet has been produced to illustrate the proposed changes council officers are recommending and potential savings are categorised as stop, reduce, charge and change.

This could mean ending some or all of the services not required by law to provide; reducing service delivery to the national average standard and prioritising services for those most in need; introducing charges to help pay for some services or stopping subsidies and looking at different service models which would see the way some services are delivered changing significantly.

A number of proposals have been put forward under this framework, including the option of no longer funding CCTV, reducing the spend on traffic signs, moving to a three-weekly bin collection and charging for nursery sessions over and above 600 hours.

Speaking about the consultation council chief executive, Elaine McPherson, said: “In common with other councils, the funding gap facing the council in the coming years remains significant to ensure that we achieve a balanced budget in 2015-16 and beyond.

“The views of our community are an important part of the budget setting process and I’d urge residents to look at the suggestions which council officers have put forward to achieve the budget savings which are required. These views will then be presented to the councillors who will be setting the budget in February.” The council is facing a cumulative indicative funding gap which stands at approximately £22 million to 2017/18.

Councillors have already knocked back recommendations to allow the use of compulsory redundancies and the principle of an alternative operational model which would see the development of schools as community service hubs.

The budget booklet can be viewed on ClacksWeb, where you can also complete an online survey.

Staff in your local council office can help if you don’t have access to a computer and you can also give your views by emailing mcb@clacks.gov.uk or writing to MCB, Clackmannanshire Council, Kilncraigs, Greenside Street, Alloa FK10 1EB.

Some of the illustrative officer proposals: Stop: - Providing the community warden service - Supply of free dog waste bags - Subsidising free swimming in the summer holidays - All supported bus services (C64, C68, C69 and C70) Reduce: - Frequency of ground maintenance (grass cutting etc) - Subsidy to Dial-a-Journey - Budget to prepare and implement Biodiversity Action Plan - Frequency of litter tidying to national standards Change - Animal welfare and pest control service - The hours of school crossing patrollers to meet the needs of schools - Create a central team of nursery teachers who will visit nurseries on a rotational basis - School cleaning arrangements through redesign Charge: - Increase burial charges to align with other authorities - Increase charge for bulky uplift - For second garden bin - Increase licensing fees