A COUNCIL tax rise across Worcestershire has been confirmed - as a £327 million spending package for the county was given the green light.

Worcestershire County Council has today voted through its 2015/16 budget after two hours of deliberation.

The Conservative leadership's latest spending plans were given the nod by 35 votes to 19 despite opposition from Labour, Lib Dem, Green and independent councillors.

It means from April:

- Just under £24 million will be slashed from spending and council tax will rise 1.9 per cent, adding at least £20.54 to the average band D bill

- Allowances for all 57 councillors will be frozen for the seventh year on the spin, as we revealed last week, and spending reductions in areas like the mobile library service and street lights will continue to be ramped up

- An extra £4 million is being pumped into children's services to cope with heavy demand, something we first revealed was on the cards before Christmas

- Highways and footways is one of the big winners, with the council putting together a kitty which could climb as high as nearly £12 million to improve them, although around half of that depends on a bid for Government funding

- £3.6 million has been earmarked towards flooding protection, £400,000 to plan for public transport improvements and £400,000 on the Worcester Cathedral square revamp, to name just three big commitments

The council tax rise will be the second in successive years and follows freezes in 2011, 2012 and 2013 by the Tory administration.

The cabinet rejected the chance to grab a Government 'rates freeze' cash sweetener, worth the equivalent of a one per cent rise, saying children's social care needs more backing because of the ever-increasing number of children in care, which now stands at around 700 young people in the county.

During today's meeting Councillor Adrian Hardman, the leader, revealed he'd been emailed by local government secretary Eric Pickles, who tried to get him to change his mind as a last-ditch plea.

It follows our report about Mr Pickles putting the pressure on yesterday.

"This is a budget which faces up to the challenge this council faces, not only in this year ahead but in the future," said Cllr Hardman.

"It also allows us time to address the public expectations clearly set out in the consultation process, and focuses on the things they want to see improved like our infrastructure and flooding prevention."

He told the council chamber that despite the rise council tax in Worcestershire is still "the ninth lowest in the country" and well below comparable shires like Nottinghamshire.

He said the budget, which also includes a pure cash rise of £2 million towards adult social care to cope with demographic changes, was about "protecting the most vulnerable" in society.

The footways fund will rise by around £400,000 to £1.2 million, and in terms of highways, there are hopes £6 million can be secured from the Government's highways challenge fund.

The capital and revenue funds earmarked for highways and footways is £4.9 million.

He said the money on footways and roads was "very significant" and born out of public feedback.

During clashes in the council chamber, the Labour Party wanted to create a £2 million fund to help pay 650 of County Hall's lowest-paid staff the Living Wage of £7.85 an hour, and restore some cuts to street lighting and mobile libraries.

By raiding the reserves and even taking £20,000 from office costs for the Lord Lieutenant Patrick Holcroft, they also suggested an extra £50,000 towards helping domestic violence sufferers, £200,000 for young people's activities and £700,000 for footways as an "alternative budget"

It was voted down by the Tories, who called it "unsustainable", with the Living Wage idea alone costing taxpayers £900,000 a year at least.

Labour's ideas included £100,000 on reversing street lighting savins and £50,000 back into the mobile libraries service which was cut only two weeks ago.

Councillor Peter McDonald, Labour group leader, said: "The one thing consistent in this budget is the hostility to families, who will pay more for less.

"If this council had an ounce of respect for its staff it would pay the Living Wage.

"The cuts to the mobile library service are on attack on the elderly, this budget is hostile to everything that makes a caring council."

Labour Councillor Robin Lunn said: "Our alternative budget delivers fairness and sound financial management."

He said he found it "shamful" the council did not pay the Living Wage, a rate calculated by indepedent academics.

A vote on the alternatives was lost 13-41, with the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats criticising it.

Tory Councillor John Campion, cabinet member for transformation and change, said the "financial envelope is shrinking" and insisted tough choices were needed.

"Today, this would be a bit of jam, but tomorrow we'd have a problem twice as hard," he said.

Conservative Councillor Ken Pollock said giving so many workers a sudden rise would demoralise staff earning rates just above the Living Wage now, because a differential would vanish, while Conservative Councillor Marcus Hart said raiding the reserves was not sustainable.

A second alternative budget from the Lib Dem and Green groups, alongside backing from Liberal Councillor Fran Oborski, was also rejected nine votes to 45.

It included a controversial bid to cut the economic development staff budget and get Business Central, the jobs-creating 'spin-off' brand of the council, to be "self-funded" and under the wing of Worcestershire's Local Enterprise Partnership, saving £300,000 by 2017.

They also wanted to slash PR spending by £6,000, axe two cabinet roles, taking the Tory administration from nine politicians to seven, and save £2,000 by scrapping free lunches for councillors at six full council meetings per year.

In return, they earmarked some of that cash towards a pay rise for all staff on the lowest spinal column grade to £7.30 an hour, an extra £100,000 into child and adolescent mental health services, and £300,000 back into Worcestershire Regulatory Services by 2017.

Councillor Liz Tucker, Lib Dem group leader, said: "This would show a willingness on our part to be included in the cuts and savings we need to make."

During the debate Tory Councillor Liz Eyre, a cabinet member responsible for children, said £5.2 million is spent on children's mental health services now.

Calling it a "tiny" increase, she added: "Your proposal has no foundation, no real strategy to which it is linked, it's political grandstanding using very emotive wording purely to capture headlines."

Labour criticised the suggestion to cut loose on economic development spending, with Cllr McDonald, calling it "pathetic dribble".

When it came to a vote on the Conservative budget Councillor Campion called it "sustainable, affordable and right for the people of Worcestershire".

The entire Tory group, UKIP's Peter Bridle and three others, including independent Councillor Alan Amos pushed it through 35-19 despite the opposition.

The final council tax bands will be resolved over the next two weeks when the fire service and district authorities finalise their elements.

The fire service is considering a 1.9 per cent rise, the biggest without staging a referendum, while police and crime commissioner Bill Longmore has also opted for the same rise.

Worcester City Council will have its vote a week on Tuesday, and is expecting to freeze its element, although the county council controls 72 per cent of the bill.