Skip to Main Content

Agenda and decisions

Venue: Conference Room - Usk, NP15 1AD. View directions

Contact: Democratic Services 

Note: https://join-emea.broadcast.skype.com/monmouthshire.gov.uk/52f143abd50949bf979431b8dd0f6ec9 

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

2.

Declarations of Interest

3.

To consider the following reports (Copies attached):

3a

OPENING OF A POST OFFICE WITHIN USK COMMUNITY HUB pdf icon PDF 87 KB

Divisions/Wards affected:All

 

Purpose: To seek approval, subject to a successful application and planning permission, to create and operate a Post Office within Usk Community Hub following the announcement of the planned closure of the current facility on Bridge Street.

 

Author: Matthew Gatehouse, Head of Policy and Governance

Richard Drinkwater,    Community Hub Manager (Caldicot, Chepstow & Usk)

 

Contact Details: matthewgatehouse@monmouthshire.gov.uk;

richarddrinkwater@monmouthshire.gov.uk

 

Additional documents:

Decision:

That subject to a satisfactory application that meets the requirements of Post Office Ltd and satisfies officers of the authority in terms of contractual and financial risk.

 

That Cabinet approves that any shortfall in funds that cannot be met from counter service income be funded from existing community hub budgets, subject to an agreement with Usk Town Council that these costs be shared equally with the Town Council.

 

To submit a planning application for change of use, to enable the Post Office to operate within the hub premises. This will not compromise the present service offer.

 

To create an additional 30 hour per week Information Assistant Post, employed by the local authority, on NJC terms and conditions to enable the Post Office to be staffed and opened during the same hours as the hub.

3b

REVENUE & CAPITAL MONITORING 2018/19 OUTTURN STATEMENT pdf icon PDF 376 KB

Division/Wards Affected: All

 

Purpose: The purpose of this report is to provide Members with information on the revenue and capital outturn position of the Authority at the end of reporting period 2 which represents the financial outturn position for the 2018/19 financial year based on October inclusive activities.

 

This report will also be considered by Select Committees as part of their responsibility to,

 

      assess whether effective budget monitoring is taking place,

      monitor the extent to which budgets are spent in accordance with agreed budget and policy framework,

      challenge the reasonableness of projected over or underspends, and

      monitor the achievement of predicted efficiency gains or progress in relation to savings proposals.

 

Author: Mark Howcroft – Assistant Head of Finance

Dave Jarrett – Senior Accountant Business Support

 

 

Contact Details: markhowcroft@monmouthshire.gov.uk

Decision:

That Members consider a net revenue forecast of £316,000 surplus, and approves the local education authority costs of compromise agreements being borne by the corporate redundancy budget rather than Children and Young People Directorate.

 

That they also recognise circa £1.3m extra capital resourcing provided recently and note that the revenue forecast is predicated on capitalising £444k expenditure accordingly, a decision that still needs to be considered by full Council in January 2019.

 

That Members note the 86% delivery of the budget setting savings agreed by full Council previously and a need for remedial action/savings in respect of £727k savings reported as delayed or unachievable by service managers.

 

That Members consider the capital outturn spend of £40.8m, introducing a £1m anticipated overspend and the presumption made around financing such as per para 3.6.7.

 

That Members note the anticipated use of reserve funding predicted at outturn and the low level of earmarked reserves, which will notably reduce the flexibility the Council has in reengineering services and facilitating change to mitigate the challenges of scare resources going forward.

 

That Members note the extent of movements in individual budgeted draws on school balances, and reported recovery plan intentions as a consequence of their approving changes to Fairer Funding guidelines since month 2

3c

CAPITAL STRATEGY ASSESSMENT 2018-19 and DRAFT CAPITAL BUDGET PROPOSALS 2019-20 to 2022-23 pdf icon PDF 388 KB

Division/Wards Affected: All

 

Purpose:Chartered institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) produced a revised regulatory Code in December 2017, which included a need for local authorities to produce a Capital Strategy.  The requirements were staggered with an aim for reporting compliance during 2018/19 with a full Capital Strategy implemented for 2019/20.  This report concentrates on the former in evaluating the governance, planning and priority setting involved in presenting 2019-20 capital budget proposals and the 3 years thereafter making up the collective capital medium term financial plan.

CIPFA report that a Capital Strategy should be tailored to individual circumstances and consequentially don’t volunteer a prescriptive format.  The overall intent is that any Capital Strategy should allow Members to understand how stewardship, value for money, prudence, sustainability and affordability will be secured.  The overall purpose of a capital strategy being to provide opportunity for engagement with Full Council to ensure overall strategy, governance procedures and risk appetite are fully understood by all elected members

The code, in describing the Capital Strategy, reports itcan be delegated to Cabinet (or similar body) with Full Council being responsible.  MCC’s approach is to report budget setting process through Cabinet, with consideration and approval of the future capital programmes resting with full Council.  The Council’s Constitution is consistent with compliance requirements.  It is anticipated that the actual resulting capital strategy will be reconciled and consistent with a wider financial strategy and both available for consideration during Spring cycle of meetings.

Author: Mark Howcroft – Assistant Head of Finance (Deputy S151 Officer)

 

Contact Details: markhowcroft@monmouthshire.gov.uk

Additional documents:

Decision:

That Cabinet considers the capital strategy requirements and assesses the preparedness of current practices to satisfy capital strategy compliance obligations for onward endorsement to Council as part of capital strategy report in January 2019.

 

That Cabinet considers the annual core capital programme identified in

Appendix 2 for 2019-20, together with the additions proposed in paras 6.14 to

6.18, and issues its draft capital budget proposals for 2019/20 to 2022/23 for consultation purposes.

 

That Cabinet reaffirms the principle that during the financial year, any new schemes volunteered can only be added to the programme if the business case demonstrates that they are self-financing or if the scheme is deemed a higher priority than current schemes in the programme and therefore displaces it.

 

When considering the relative merits of projects and potential displacement, that Cabinet consider the indicative priority matrix supplied in para 4.15, either endorsing or amending it for onward consideration by full Council.

 

That Cabinet considers the extent of proposed sale of assets captured in exempt Appendix 5, in order to support the capital programme, and that once agreed, no further options are considered for these assets.

 

That Cabinet note the potential forecast of capital receipt levels, prior to the consideration of using £75,000 of receipts balance to afford condition survey work to update historic condition survey information and a ceiling of capital receipts funding of £300k to assist with the business case affordability of

Severn View Residential Home replacement. Any excess of capital receipts generated thereafter is proposed to be applied by Treasury colleagues in a fashion that will mitigate minimum revenue provision costs and interest payments, to assist with revenue budget management. This is a change in capital receipt strategy to that applied in earmarking receipt generation to afford Members tranche A Future Schools aspirations. This will mean that any further school redevelopment will need to derive a greater extent of revenue headroom to afford the prudential borrowing financing of such developments.

3d

2019 DRAFT REVENUE BUDGET PROPOSALS 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 184 KB

Divisions/Wards Affected:   All

 

Purpose:  To set out a budget proposal for financial year 2019/20.

 

To commence a period of consultation on the budget proposal that will remain open until 31 January 2019.

 

To consider the 2019/20 budget proposal within the context of the 4 year Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) and the Corporate Plan.

 

Author: Joy Robson – Head of Finance

 

Contact: joyrobson@monmouthshire.go.uk

 

 

Additional documents:

Decision:

That Cabinet approves the release of the budget proposal for 2019/20 for consultation purposes.

 

That Cabinet approves that the consultation period and opportunity to present alternative proposals that have been assessed for Future Generations implications ends on 31st January 2019.

 

That Cabinet recognises a year on year cash reduction of £936k in funding that it will receive from Wales Government

 

That Cabinet recognises unavoidable pressures of some £5.7 million that need to be provided for within the 2019/20 budget.

 

That Cabinet confirms its intention to fully fund all pay related pressures insofar as they impact schools and demand pressures caused by increasing numbers of looked after children in Social Services.

 

That Cabinet proposes a Council Tax rise of 5.95% for financial year 2019/20.

 

That Cabinet recognises that the budget proposal remains un-balanced at this stage. There is a remaining savings gap of £594k to address.

 

An additional recommendation:

 

That Officers further develop and consult on the Future Generations Evaluation that accompanies the budget proposals to ensure that it clearly identifies the impact of budget proposals on groups of people with protected characteristics as defined by the Equalities Act alongside the ways of working and well-being goals described in the Well-being of Future Generations Act.