Cambridgeshire County Councillors have supported multi-million pound budget proposals for new services for the youth and elderly in Wisbech and East Cambridgeshire.

A majority of councillors supported the proposals at an Assets and Procurement Committee meeting on January 16, ahead of a Full Council meeting on February 13, 2024.

The plans would deliver services for both the young and old, including a Wisbech youth centre and an independent living centre in East Cambridgeshire for older members of the community.

The proposals also seek to prioritise school maintenance.

£540m capital programme is proposed across the next nine years, as well as a £218m investment across schools, roads and social care facilities and services.

Part of the programme includes a further £765,000 investment into the Wisbech Adventure Playground location.

Plans also include the construction of a youth and community centre for young people in Wisbech at the beginning of the next financial year.

Following the discovery of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) in schools across the country in 2023, Cambridgeshire County Council is pledging £600,000 a year of funds to ensure building maintenance is overseen in schools from 2024 onwards.

Councillors also supported plans for an allocated £22.2m to create an independent living centre in East Cambridgeshire.

The service will include rental flats for older members of the community who would like to live independently for longer, while still receiving a form of care to meet their increased needs.

The cost of the East Cambridgeshire independent living centre will be funded partly through rental income, as well as through monies from NHS partners who will be based in the building. 

Other parts of the proposals supported at the committee meeting include a £14.5m investment through 2029 and beyond in land and farms. 

The budget plans will be debated on February 13 at the Cambridgeshire County Council Full Council meeting, where the council's budget will then be decided.