THE steadily-improving economy is helping Worcester City Council's coffers - with its budget forecast to end the year a hefty £222,000 in the black.

Higher than expected car parking income, garden waste collections and a drag on recruitment has helped boost the balance sheet at the Guildhall.

A new report on the current state of play reveals how the first three months of the financial year, between April and June, ended with a £154,000 'surplus'.

Finance chiefs are being deliberately cautious and say they expect the whole of 2015/16 running to the end of March to end up with £220,000 more cash than expected.

Higher fees from the in-house rubbish collection service for private companies and better than expected 'land charges' - money from work like tree preservation orders or the drafting of legal agreements over particular sites - have also helped the overall picture.

The report also reveals how planning application fees - a good sign of the overall health of the economy - are break-even while sports centre income, which is still under major pressure from private operators, is £15,000 below budget.

The £222,000 predicated surplus follows last year's budget ending the year £367,000 in the black, as we revealed back in June.

The car parking income, which as we revealed in September is £53,000 up compared to the same time last year, could be £150,000 in surplus by the end of 2015/16 if trends continue.

The Conservative leadership has welcomed the position, despite last month's financial blow with the threat of having to repay £1.2 million to GP surgeries unless the Government offers to fund it.

The business rates wrangle has been objected to by all of Worcestershire's councils.

Councillor Chris Mitchell, the city council cabinet member responsible for finance, said: "The impact is significant but the good news is, full provision was made for that in the 2014/15 accounts."

Councillor Marc Bayliss, the deputy leader, said: "This is the first time I can remember since 2002 that we've been in such a healthy financial position."

The report, from finance services manager Mark Baldwin, says the year-end position is impossible to predict with a "sufficient degree of accuracy" but still forecasts a £222,000 surplus.