Agenda item

Further to Minute 132 of the last meeting, the Cabinet Member for Finance, Revenues and Benefits presented a report on the Council’s revenue outturn position for 2010/11, which are subject to final accounting entries prior to approval of the Statement of Accounts for 2010/11 by the Public Accounts and Audit Select Committee at its meeting on 29 June 2011. 

The General Fund showed a net underspend of £2.8m against the revenue budget of £154.8m (2%), which improved the year-end balance position to £10.8m.  This represented a significant improvement in the Council’s financial position over the course of the year and exceeded the £10m target set by the Corporate Director of Finance and Resources at the beginning of the year. 

The ring-fenced Housing Revenue Account (HRA) generated a surplus of £1m, enabling the HRA balance to be increased to £4.4m at 31 March 2011, and capital expenditure was £106.1m against the revised budget of £115.6m.

The Cabinet Member also advised on a number of proposed adjustments to revenue and capital budgets and, in response to an enquiry, confirmed that while the year-end underspend position enabled the Council to strengthen its reserves the on-going financial pressures and the package of savings identified to meet those pressures would continue.

Cabinet agreed:-

  (i)  To note the outturn and balances position of the Council’s General Fund revenue budgets for 2010/11 as detailed in the report;

  (ii)  The transfer of reserves of £2.776m to General Fund balances;

 (iii)  Final in-year budget adjustments as set out below:

a)  Provision for redundancy costs arising from the Council’s voluntary severance scheme (not covered by the capitalisation order agreed with DCLG) - £1.38m

b)  Contingency to reflect the increasing true risk of bad debt and write-offs across the Council’s services arising from re-adjustment of historic budgets, changes to Housing Benefits, Universal Credit and the continuing, poor economic climate - £1.672m

c)  Contingency to support the delivery of the Council’s budget through the high level of savings risks included as a result of the reduction in government funding - £1m

d)  Contingency to meet transition costs arising from the creation of the Elevate joint venture in December 2010 - £0.803m

e)  Increase in the insurance provision to reflect the rising level of claims made in 2010/11 - £0.5m

f)  Support provided to Customer Services in respect of historic Revenues and Benefits budget issues (the nature of which are the subject of a separate Cabinet report) - £1.405m

g)  Roll forward of a contingency budget in respect of joint venture costs - £1.75m

h)  Roll forward of regeneration budgets in Resources and Finance - £0.48m

i)  Roll forward of Children’s Services budgets (including Adult college, music services and Butler Court) - £1.048m

 (iv)  To note the outturn and balances position of the Housing Revenue Account as detailed in paragraph 4 of the report;

  (v)  To note the outturn position for the 2010/11 Financial Health Indicators as set out in Appendix B to the report;

 (vi)  To note the outturn position of the Council’s Capital Programme as set out in paragraph 6 of the report;

(vii)  The capital budget adjustments and funding from borrowings totalling £4.4m as detailed in paragraph 6.7 of the report;

(viii)  The carry forward of items from the 2010/11 Capital Programme into the 2011/12 and future years’ Capital Programme as set out in Appendix D to the report, subject to a final review by the Corporate Director of Finance and Commercial Services;

 (ix)  The roll back of 2011/12 funding to meet 2010/11 Capital Programme costs incurred ahead of schedule as set out in Appendix E to the report;

  (x)  The appropriate re-phasing of 2010/11 - 2012/13 capital budgets where expenditure is out of line with actual expenditure; and

 (xi)  To note the outturn position for the 2010/11 Prudential Indicators as set out in Appendix F to the report.