A VISION for Worcestershire has been outlined by the county council's new leader - including less children in care, a better deal for the elderly and serious measures to tackle congestion.

Your Worcester News can today reveal Councillor Simon Geraghty's main aspirations for running County Hall, calling it "a fantastic opportunity" to make a difference.

The 39-year-old has risen to become the youngest top-tier council leader in the entire country and plans to progress his aims as quickly as possible, which include:

- Helping transform the county's prospects by encouraging more people who live in Worcestershire to work here rather than commute

- Finally tackling the crisis which has resulted in 700 youngsters being taken into care, draining resources

- Making sure that dualling Worcester's Carrington Bridge remains at the top of the county's agenda in its 'asks' from central Government, which will cost around £70 million

- New efforts to improve the future of elderly care in Worcestershire, including lobbying the Government over the £37 million Better Care Fund

- More help for people in their 60s looking to find work, in the hope it will boost the economy and mobilise a generation more healthy and active than ever before

Councillor Geraghty, who has taken over following former leader Adrian Hardman's resignation after being charged with drink driving, said: "I didn't expect it to happen at this period of time and under these circumstances, but change happens.

"Events change the political landscape and that's what has happened here, it's no more or no less than that.

"But it's a fantastic opportunity to shape Worcestershire, I was born and grew up here and it's my home.

"I'm determined to make Worcestershire as successful as possible without losing what we've got in terms of it being such a fantastic place to live."

He was first elected in 2000 aged just 23 to Worcester City Council and became its leader in 2006, a role he has held for nine of the last 10 years.

A former Worcester Sixth Form College pupil and Bristol University graduate with a degree in Politics, he has managed to make a living out of politics and first entered County Hall ten years ago, becoming its deputy leader since 2010.

He has already laid his stall out by mapping a clear plan for what he wants to prioritise.

"It's been a bit of a whirlwind but it's about getting on top of everything now," he said.

"Setting a balanced budget is our immediate priority (for the 2016/17 financial year) before we take a couple of months looking at the future.

"There will be no immediate changes because myself and Adrian were a great team, but we will refresh our Corporate Plan over the summer to make sure it reflects what we intend to do."

He said one of the big items was congestion, something he believes can be tackled by a range of measures including dualling the A4440 Carrington Bridge in Worcester, the A38 improvements in north Worcestershire and getting Norton parkway open by the end of 2017.

"I'm optimistic about Carrington Bridge because I think the Government 'gets' the reason why we need it dualled all the way to Powick island," he said.

"Firstly it's about unlocking economic growth and housing and secondly, it's about flooding resilience.

"We have to be able to tackle unnecessary congestion, and allowing people to get off the motorway network and be able to access it easily is very important."

He has also pointed to the huge pressures at both ends of the care spectrum, not least having more than 700 looked-after children in Worcestershire, a figure which is forecast to cost taxpayers more than £35 million this year.

The spending on elderly care is also eating up around £127 million a year, some 40 per cent of the overall budget.

"We've got to ensure we get on top of our demand led pressures, both in terms of the sheer numbers and the length of time people spend in our care," he said.

"Those two massive spend areas make up around 60 per cent of our budget - if we can't manage it, it will crowd out the other stuff we want to do."

He also intends to talk with ministers about speeding up the integration between adult social care and the NHS, saying a £37 million pot of money known as the Better Care Fund should be beefed up and in the county's control before 2018.

Some of his early dialogue with the Government will also include talks over business rates, with Councillor Geraghty saying he is anxious to make sure there are "no strings attached" to Chancellor George Osborne's pledge that they can keep all of it by 2019/20.

His new deputy leader Councillor Anthony Blagg, who was also first elected to County Hall 10 years ago, has been part of the Conservative leadership since 2009.

The retired former researcher has an extensive CV including work for councils up and down the country, as well as being a small businesses adviser and a web designer.

He said he was "very proud" to be appointed deputy and revealed his vision with Councillor Geraghty includes getting more older people into work.

"To me 60 is the new 40, an awful lot of people have got so much skills and experience and as a county I'd like us to tap into that," he said.

Councillor Geraghty, who is resigning as city council leader next month to fully focus on the top job, told your Worcester News he was "optimistic and ambitious" for what lies ahead.

He also said they would not be "Worcester-centric" and ensure their plans for the future take consideration of all corners of the county.

"I'm a politician in the south of the county and Anthony is from the north (Bromsgrove) so there's a great balance there," he said.

"But we'll be looking to serve the whole county and represent all of Worcestershire the best we can.

"Despite the challenges we are still the largest public sector capital investor in this county, and the economy and environment will be right up there in terms of our balance," he said.

"We've got the ability to shape this county more than any other public sector organisation.

"We will take this county forward but want to make sure we keep in place the reasons why people want to live here, with its beautiful environment and exceptional quality of life," he said.

THE BIG CHALLENGES AHEAD: WHAT DOES HE NEED TO SORT OUT?

BETTER SCHOOL FUNDING

AFTER more than two decades of fierce campaigning, Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has promised major reform to school funding this year, and about time.

A consultation with headteachers is currently underway but with the county council responsible for education, how this pans out will be vital.

Councillor Geraghty will want to ensure County Hall's leadership stays 'on-message' and gets across to central Government just how badly Worcestershire needs a fair deal.

Former leader Adrian Hardman sparked anger among headteachers last year when he suggested they dip into their reserves rather than carry on banging the same drum.

The task here will be not only securing serious change, but hoping that school heads around Worcestershire are happy with the outcome.

DEVOLUTION

EVER since the Scottish referendum, Chancellor George Osborne has been promising a 'devolution revolution' across Britain by handing more powers and responsibility to local government.

The offer has led to areas like Manchester and Sheffield securing multi-millions in 'City deals', but for shire counties like Worcestershire the end result will be very different.

Back in November the county council published a 12-page summary document of what it wanted from Whitehall, a so-called 'county deal' similar to the one in Cornwall.

It includes devolved funding for flooding protection, control over swathes of public sector property and a pioneering service called 'Connecting People', bringing together all the available help for struggling families needing support.

Councillor Geraghty's task is to push it over the line - and make sure the deal is the right one for the county.

CARRINGTON BRIDGE

AFTER deciding not to pursue any hopes of completing Worcester's ring road around the city, the leadership has long staked its hopes on securing the money to dual this notorious A4440 bottleneck.

The only problem is the cost, which is forecast to be an eye-watering £70 million to dual the route all the way to Powick island.

The county council has been making all the right noises, getting the entire business community behind it and lobbying MPs, who in turn have been badgering ministers about it whenever they get chance.

Around £41 million has also been sunk into dualling the rest of the A4440 Southern Link Road by the council, with £7 million put aside for Carrington Bridge if Government can help with the rest.

Councillor Geraghty must help convince the likes of Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin that it's worth the investment.

THE FINANCES

THE challenge could hardly be tougher, with around £25 million needing to be slashed from spending every year for the foreseeable future at County Hall.

Demographic pressures are one major factor driving the problems but on top of that, there is a shrinking pool of Government funding to contend with.

The budget gap for the 2016/17 financial year is currently being worked through but there are fears it will end up anywhere from £2 million to £13 million, meaning a big immediate headache.

Councillor Geraghty has told this newspaper he will raid the reserves to avoid making more fresh cuts next year but beyond that, more reform is needed.

He was due to meet Local Government Secretary Greg Clark last Wednesday for talks, but the minister postponed it at short notice due to a select committee hearing.

They'll certainly need to talk properly, and soon.

WORCESTERSHIRE PARKWAY

THIS £22 million planned railway station at Norton is due to open next year, but some big hurdles need to be overcome.

Bosses at the council are embroiled in a long-running dispute with a private developer, Norton Parkway Developments Limited, which owns the rights to the land and wants to build the station itself.

The council has already threatened a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) over the land but will want to avoid a protracted High Court legal battle, not least because any delays could be costly.

Under a timetable worked up with Network Rail it needs to get the station up and running before 2017 is out, with the clock ticking.

It already has planning permission and the funds are in place, now the work needs to start without any legal battles.