Decision details

Further to Minute No. 44 of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee – Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services held on 7 February 2023, the Cabinet considered the report of the Executive Director of Corporate Resources and Customer Services that provided:

·          An assessment of the Council’s current financial position and approach to the 2023/24 Budget Plan and preparation for the additional two-year budget period 2024/25 to 2025/26;

·          An update on the Government’s announcement of resources that are available to the Council for 2023/24 and 2024/25;

·          The Council’s current financial position and the assumptions built into the Medium-Term Financial Plan;

·          The proposed Budget for 2023/24; and,

·          The proposed Capital Programme for 2023/24.

The report also sets out the financial strategy of the Council and the national and local financial context within which it is operating, and it indicated that the Council has a statutory requirement to remain financially sustainable and to balance its budget every year.

Members of the Cabinet expressed concern that neither the Autumn Statement or the Local Government Finance Settlement 2023/24 had mentioned the Public Health Grant and therefore no information was available on the national totals or individual allocations.

The Executive Director of Corporate Resources and Customer Services reported that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee – Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services had not made any proposed amendments to the proposals set out in the report.

Decision Made:

The Council be recommended to:

(1)      note the update of the Medium-Term Financial Plan for the period 2023/24 to 2025/26;

(2)      approve the Budget Plan for 2023/24, including the Revenue Budget, allocation of specific grants (Section 13), and Capital Programme (Appendix D), and authorise officers to undertake the necessary actions to implement the recommendation; and

(3)      Note the Schools’ Forum decisions on the Dedicated Schools Grant and Individual School Budgets (Section 12).

Reasons for the Decision:

The recommendations in the report provide the basis on which the Budget Plan will be balanced for the financial year 2023/24 and will ensure that the Council’s statutory obligations are met. In addition, it begins the planning for the financial strategy for the following two years to give the Council sufficient time to identify specific proposals to deliver financial sustainability over that period.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

The Council is legally required to set a balanced budget each year and this report has taken due consideration of all financial issues in its development.

No additional options are available for inclusion.