Decision details

This paper updates the Council’s current MTFS and extends it for a further year to 2025/26 to maintain the Council's rolling 3-year planning framework. [Includes Local Government Finance Settlement Update]

Full Council – 23 February 2023

RECOMMENDATION TO FULL COUNCIL ON 23 FEBRUARY 2023

RESOLVED that Cabinet:-

1.    Notes the contents of the updated Medium Term Financial Strategy 2023-2026; and

2.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the report of the Service Director Finance (S151 Officer), under Section 25 of the Local Government Act 2003 at Section 1 be noted, that the 2023/24 budget proposals be agreed and that the Chief Executive and Senior Management Team (SMT), in consultation with Cabinet Spokespersons, submit, for early consideration, detailed plans that ensure the Council’s ongoing financial sustainability in 23/24 and beyond; and

3.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the revised Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) and Budget Forecast for 23/24 to 25/26 contained in the budget pack attached at Section 2 (supported by the suite of background papers in Sections 2a – 2d) be noted and that these are monitored as part of the arrangements for the delivery of the MTFS; and

4.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that provision of £35.4M to cover anticipated demographic and other cost pressures in 23/24:

·       Pay (£9.0M),

·       Energy (£5.3M),

·       Children’s Social Care including the development plan costs (£7.0M),

·       Adult Social Care including hospital discharges (£6.5M),

·       Homes to School Transport (£1.2M),

·       Waste Services (£0.9M),

·       Inflation on major contracts e.g., PFI (£3.1M),

·       Funding borrowing costs (£0.6M),

·       Investment in legal resource (£0.5M),

·       Investment in car parking (£0.5M),

·       Youth zone running costs (£0.8M)

be approved for inclusion in the budget as identified at Section 2; and

5.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the budgetary provisions previously set aside in the 22/23 budget for demography, demand and energy costs totalling £9.2M be approved to be released to mitigate the above pressures; and

6.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the specific Adult Social Care grant of £2.1M received in the 2022 Local Government Finance Settlement be used to contribute to the funding of inflationary pressures in the care sector; and

7.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the increase in the Better Care Fund of £1.9M received in the 2022 Local Government Finance Settlement be used to fund the cost of hospital discharges; and

8.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that £7.5M of additional general social care funding received in the 2022 Local Government Finance Settlement be set aside pending further assessment of the emerging financial risks relating to Childrens and Adults Social Care; and

9.    Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that reserves totalling £5.5M be used to further mitigate the pressures above, strictly on the basis of this being a temporary bridging strategy to permanently aligning ongoing spend and income over the MTFS planning period; and

10.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the proposed efficiency savings in 23/24 highlighted in Section 2 and detailed at Section 4a – 4e be approved for implementation and that Members also note the development of a transformation programme to help deliver balanced budget positions over the medium term (24/25 – 25/26); and

11.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the Council’s reserves strategy and updated reserves position at Section 2b be noted; and

12.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the proposed changes to the 23/24 fees and charges policy and accompanying schedule of charges set out at Section 2d be approved; and

13.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 approval of the cash limited budgets for each Service with overall net expenditure for 23/24 of £230.4M as highlighted in Section 5a; and

14.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 consideration of the budgets for all services be given and to approve the 23/24 – 25/26 budget proposals presented at Sections 5a – 5c, subject to Cabinet receiving detailed implementation reports where appropriate; and

15.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 consideration and approval be given to the changes to the schools funding formula including the transfer of funding from the schools’ block to the high needs block and approve the proposed 23/24 schools block budget as set out at Section 5d; and

16.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the capital investment schemes totalling £12.4M (Section 6 Appendix 1), be included within the capital programme and released subject to receiving further detailed business cases where appropriate; and

17.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that £2M is provisionally set aside for additional investment in repairing the borough’s highways (principal roads/side streets) and released subject to receiving a further detailed report on plans for its use; and

18.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the Chief Executive and SMT, in consultation with Cabinet Spokespersons, be required to submit reports into Cabinet, as a matter of urgency, in relation to the detailed General Fund Revenue Budget for 23/24 on any further action required to achieve an appropriately balanced budget in addition to those proposals set out above; and

19.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the Chief Executive and SMT be responsible for managing their respective budgets including ensuring the implementation of all approved saving proposals; and

20.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that the Authority's SMT be charged with ensuring that the budget remains in balance and report regularly into Cabinet on budget/savings monitoring including any action required; and

21.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that Cabinet and the Section 151 Officer be authorised to make any necessary technical adjustments to form the 23/24 budget; and

22.Recommends to Full Council on 23 February 2023 that appropriate consultation on the budget proposals takes place with the Trade Unions and representatives of Non-Domestic Ratepayers and that the views of consultees be considered by Cabinet and the Council; and

23.Agrees that the budget papers be submitted for the consideration of the full Council.