Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director – Corporate Services and Commercial

Further to Minute No. 44 of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services) held on 11 February 2025, the Cabinet considered the report of the Executive Director – Corporate Services and Commercial that set out:

·       An assessment of the Council’s current financial position and approach to the 2025/26 Budget Plan and preparation for the additional two-year budget period 2026/27 to 2027/28.

·       An update on the Government’s announcement of resources that were available to the Council for 2025/26.

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

·       The proposed Budget for 2025/26; and,

·       The proposed Capital Programme for 2025/26 to 2027/28.

The report also set out the financial strategy of the Council and the national and local financial context within which it was operating. The Council had a statutory requirement to remain financially sustainable and to balance its budget every year.

The following appendices were attached to the report:

·       Individual School Budgets 2025/26

·       Budget Saving Proposals / Mitigations 2025/26 – 2027/28

·       Draft Council Budget Summary 2025/26

·       Capital Programme 2025/26 – 2027/28

Cabinet Members asked questions/commented on the following issues:

·       Budget challenges due to increasing costs;

·       The new government’s commitment to a fundamental review of local government funding that will inform the next three-year settlement from 2026/27; and

·       Thanks to officers for their work on the budget, particularly to the Executive Director – Corporate Services and Commercial, as it was his last Sefton budget prior to taking up a new role in another local authority.

Decisions Made:

That

(1)      the update of the Medium-Term Financial Plan for the period 2025/26 to 2027/28 be noted;

(2)      the Council be recommended to approve the Budget Plan for 2025/26, including the Revenue Budget, allocation of specific grants, as set out at section 13 of the report, and the Capital Programme, as set out at Appendix D to the report, and authorise officers to undertake the necessary actions to implement the recommendations;

(3)      the Schools’ Forum decisions on the Dedicated Schools Grant and Individual School Budgets, as set out at section 12 of the report, be noted

(4)      the application of the 2025/26 Dedicated Schools Grant funding for Schools; Early Years; High Needs and Central Schools Support agreed by the Schools’ Forum, as set out at section 12 of the report, be approved;

(5)      authority be delegated to the Head of Health and Wellbeing / Director of Public Health, in consultation with Cabinet Member - Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion, to formalise the agreement relating to the Drug and Alcohol Treatment and Recovery Improvement Grant, and to issue a contract variation to uplift the service contract in line with the Grant funding as per existing arrangements, as set out at section 13 of the report;

(6)      the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £1.500m for the demolition of Vine House funded by prudential borrowing, as set out at section 17 of the report;

(7)      the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £0.500m for Food Waste Management funded by prudential borrowing, as set out at section 17 of the report;

(8)      the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £0.219m for Hawthorne Road Wash Bay and Additional Works funded by prudential borrowing, as set out at section 17 of the report;

(9)      the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £4.277m for the Fleet Renewal Programme funded by prudential borrowing, as set out at section 17 of the report;

(10)    the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £1.000m for Temporary Accommodation funded by prudential borrowing, as set out at section 17 of the report; and

(11)    the Council be recommended to approve a supplementary capital estimate of £4.200m for Disabled Facilities Grants funded by an external grant from the Better Care Fund, as set out at section 17 of the report.

Reasons for the Decisions:

The recommendations in the report provided the basis on which the Budget Plan would be balanced for the financial year 2025/26 and would ensure that the Council’s statutory obligations were met. In addition, it began 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 was legally required to set a balanced budget each year and the report had taken due consideration of all financial issues in its development. No additional options were available for inclusion.