Received a report from the Corporate Director of Resources providing an update on the Council’s revenue and capital position for the first three months of the 2009/10 financial year.
The current forecast for revenue expenditure indicates that current budget pressures exist across three departments amounting to £2.5million (Children’s Services £0.9 million, Customer Services £1.1 million and Resources £0.5 million). The largest pressures are within the Customer Services department, where expenditure within the Barking and Dagenham Direct division is currently at a higher level than originally anticipated. Also within the Children’s Services department where pressures are arising due to providing transport services for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and from Looked after Children Placements and in meeting the Council’s Leaving Care responsibilities.
Where pressures do exist, all departments will need to address these as part of their own, and the Council’s, ongoing budget monitoring process. The outcomes and progress of any action plans will be monitored and reported to both the Resources Monitoring Panels and Executive through the regular budget monitoring meetings and reports.
Agreed, in order to assist the Council to achieve all of its Community Priorities and as a matter of good financial practice, to:
(i) Note the current position of the Council’s revenue and capital budget as at 30 June 2009;
(ii) Note the position for the Housing Revenue Account; and
(iii) Note that where potential pressures have been highlighted, Corporate Directors are required to identify and implement the necessary action plans to mitigate these budget pressures to ensure that the necessary balanced budget for the Council is achieved by year end; and
(iv) Virements with the Schools Budget for 2009/10 that allocate or defer £4.647 million of currently unallocated funding in the following ways
a) Allocating £2.1 million to all schools on the basis of age-weighted pupil units;
b) Deferring a decision about £0.4 million of funding for schools until Executive has made a final decision about whether it wishes to pursue an initiative for expanding free school meals or introducing a breakfast scheme;
c) Allocating an extra £0.5 million for schools, which will be allocated to Warren on the basis of a pre-existing agreement to provide them with such funding during 2009/10;
d) Earmark £0.135 million for the Extended Schools Initiative, in accordance with plans for the service made during 2008/09;
e) Allocating £0.09 million to the school specific contingency budget; and
f)
Deferring £1.422 million of funding to 2010/11
financial year, so as not to count in the Central Expenditure Limit
calculation for 2009/10
(section 3.3.4 of the report);
(V) Note the prudential
indicators for April to June 2009; and
(Vi) Note the first quarter financial health indicators.