Residents could be facing a winter of discontent after the county council froze all ‘non-essential’ spending - admitting it looks set to overspend nearly £6m of its annual budget.

Road repairs are among the services due to be slashed after Buckinghamshire County Council leaders yesterday agreed the emergency measures, blaming increasing demand for social care of adults and children for the projected shortfall in 2015/16.

Although the council has not outlined what it considers to be ‘non-essential’, some road repairs and projects will have to be postponed and spending on computer equipment, building adaptions and staff training will be halted.

A full review of be reviewing all agency and contracted posts will also be carried out as the authority looks to tighten its belt.

The shock measures were agreed by cabinet last night, with the savings put in place to ensure the books can be balanced come the end of the financial year – a leagal requirement for councils.

BCC Leader Martin Tett said the next few months would be “challenging” for residents, blaming a significant increase in demand on services for vulnerable adults and children.

But he insists the council is well-run, and that the projected overspend has been caught early enough to rectify.

He said: “Yesterday, my Cabinet and I agreed, in public, to a freeze on all non-essential spending until the end of the financial year to stop what could become a very challenging situation for us and the public.

“External pressures and demand for services mean we face a potential overspend, despite the fact we are a well-run, efficient Council which has saved almost £100m over the past five years. It is precisely because we are well-run that we can see the early warning signs and react to them in time.

“The main catalyst for our potential overspend is the significant increase in demand on services for vulnerable adults and children. There is little we can do about this because we have to give priority to safeguarding our old and our young.

“However, we can control other parts of Council spending. So, from now, spending will be frozen on non-essential, non-committed items until the end of March. By non-essential, we mean activities that we are not required to do by law. There will of course be exceptions because we have to keep the business going.

“I’m sorry to have to do this but if we don’t act, we could find we have no money left in reserves in a year or so.

“Managing the council’s budget is like managing your own household budget - as soon as you see the prospect of getting into debt, you tighten your belt.”

Cllr Tett said the public will see an impact in repairs and maintenance of highways and pavements, with some routine repairs and improvement projects likely to be put back.