Issue - meetings

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Performance and Core Services presented a report on the Council’s budget and capital monitoring position for April – July 2019 and April to June 2019.

The forecast expenditure in the General Fund was £158.352m against a budget of £148.820m, equating to a gross General Fund overspend of £9.5m. At the beginning of the financial year there was a high level of uncertainty, particularly around demand and cost increase pressures and so, the position could change. However, if the level of expenditure continued into next year it would exceed the funding plans set out in the Medium Term Financial Strategy. For these reasons, Cabinet was being asked to note the need for possible remedial measures to be identified and that a further report would be presented to an upcoming meeting of the Cabinet.

This report also included the first quarterly Capital Programme report for completeness. The overall general fund capital programme was £169.356m. Forecast spend against the total general fund programme was £156.161 resulting in a forecast underspend of £12.207m.

Members referred to the scale of the challenge faced by the Council in having to deliver services without adequate levels of funding by the Government, particularly for care and support services and the budgetary pressures faced by schools in meeting the needs of children and young people, particularly those with high needs.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note the projected revenue outturn for Council services as set out in sections 2 and 3 to 11 and Appendix A to the report;

(ii)  Note the forecast outturn on the Dedicated Schools Budget as set out in section 12 of the report;

(iii)  Note the reprofiled Capital Programme and the forecast outturn as set out in section 14 and Appendices B and C to the report;

(iv)   Approve the following additions to the 2019/20 Capital Programme, as detailed in section 16 of the report:

·  An additional £30,000 for further, unforeseen repairs work to Woodlands (Registry Office),

·  An additional £7,614,989 to fully fund the Fleet Replacement capital programme, bringing the total revised allocation to £10,689,989; and,

(v)  Note the need to identify in-year remedial action in relation to General Fund revenue expenditure and that a further report shall be presented to Cabinet in October/November, as set out in section 2.5 of the report.