Hertfordshire County Council already heading for a £6.8million overspend

Herts County Council look set to overspend by £6.8million in 2019/20, based on the first three months of the financial year.

The county council - which is responsible for services such as education, social care, highways and public health - has an annual budget in excess of £800million.

But a report to the cabinet on Monday (September 23) has revealed that - based on the first financial quarter of 2019/20 - the council may not keep to its budget.

That, says the report, is largely due to the additional funding required to find placements for ‘looked after’ children.

And that level of overspend - should it continue - will use the council’s entire revenue contingency fund and will force the council to dip into its reserves.