Inverclyde Council agrees budget

Inverclyde Council has agreed its budget for the coming financial year as it aimed to plug a funding gap of just over £3 million.Among the additional investments totalling £5.8m will be a £1.3m investment for facilities including Lady Octavia Sports Centre (£470,000) and Boglestone Community Centre (£830,000). The council also plans to invest an additional £150,000 in developing a new tennis facility in Inverclyde to bring the council contribution to the project to £500,000.The budget also proposes a three-year capital programme covering the period 2018-2021 with investment of just over £68m, with £21m to be invested in the education estate.Projects for this period include:- £5.8m on the refurbishment and extension of St Mary’s Primary School- £1.6m on an extension to Gourock Primary School- £1m on refurbishing Hillend Children’s Centre- £350,000 on the upgrade of Larkfield Children’s CentreSavings proposals include a £159,000 reduction in economic and regeneration funding for urban regeneration company Riverside Inverclyde (ri).