Monmouthshire County Council is asking communities to work with it in light of the funding reductions from the Welsh Government, which have exceeded the original expectations.

The council was aware it faced drastic funding cuts, but the release of recent figures, suggests the council will need to find savings of at least £9m over the next year, and savings of over £23m over the next four years.

Because of this, many services could see their budgets being reduced by as much as 19 per cent, and in a bid to reach as many residents as possible, the council is sending information in the form of a newsletter to all households in order to help them understand the extent of the challenges ahead.

MCC's leader, Councillor Peter Fox said, "There are some big decisions that will need to be made over the coming months.

"Some of that will mean services change, stop or are run by other community groups.

"We need to help people understand the situation that we're all facing and this newsletter is the first step in informing and involving our residents.

"It's essential that we give everyone the opportunity to be involved.

Councillor Phil Murphy, MCC's cabinet member with responsibility for finance said, "We recognise that the traditional role that the council plays is changing. It's no longer about just providing services.

"Communities are setting their own goals and it's our job to support them in achieving those goals.

"We need to continue to improve the way we support communities so that all efforts have a positive impact on future communities."

The council insist that no decisions have been made about services which will be affected, and that residents will be consulted through a range of community events for people to share their views.

Councillor Fox added, "We need to take into account the unique needs of their towns and places. There is no one size fits all and we want to talk to people about what matters most to them so we can target diminished budgets and resources as effectively as possible."

"We're relying on our communities to tell us what matters to them and be involved."

Information about community events will be publicised soon, and if you have ideas and want to get involved visit monmouthshire.gov.uk/futuremonmouthshire for more information.