Spending more than £30m on taxis to get youngsters with special educational needs to Norfolk schools has contributed to a £14.3m overspend in the county council's children's services department.
And that has sparked questions as to whether targets to save a further £11.8m next year, as part of Norfolk County Council's need to save another £42.6m can be achieved.
That £42.6m is on top of almost £60m of cuts and savings County Hall is making this year - and the Conservative-led authority has conceded it is facing a challenge to make the existing savings from children's services.
Andrew Jamieson, the council's cabinet member for finance said £50m is being spent this year on transport in the department, of which much is spent on taxis for children with special educational needs.
He said: "Given the way the law is written, it is extremely difficult to turn the tables on home-to-school transport, which is £50m in the current year.
"Sixty-five per cent of that is on taxis for children with special educational needs. We are spending an awful lot of money on taxi cabs."
Mr Jamieson said the council had prevailed on schools to try to bring that figure down, and that new specialist schools and changes to keep children within mainstream schools could bring the figure down.
Conservative Daniel Elmer, previously the deputy cabinet member for children's services, said the department regularly overspent and the council was "poor" at forecasting demand for services.
Green Jamie Osborn and Steve Morphew, Labour chairman of the council's scrutiny committee, where the issue was discussed, questioned if savings targets were achievable.
READ MORE: Ofsted rates Norfolk County Council children's services good
Harvey Bullen, director of financial management at the council, conceded it was challenging, with the Covid-19 pandemic increasing demand on children's services, but said adjustments would always need to be made as the year progressed.
Mr Jamieson added he was keen to cut the costs of residential social care for young people, potentially by joining forces with neighbouring councils to build shared facilities.
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