Agenda item

Context:

1. The purpose of this report is to provide Members with information on the forecast revenue outturn position of the Authority at the end of period 3 which represents month 9 financial information for the 2016/17 financial year.

2. 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.

Key Issues and recommendations to Cabinet;

1. That Cabinet notes the extent of forecast revenue underspend using period 3 data of £79,000, an improvement of £919,000 on previous reported position at period 2.

2. That Cabinet expects Chief Officers to continue to review the levels of over and underspends and reallocate budgets to reduce the extent of compensatory positions needing to be reported from at quarterly cycles.

3. That Cabinet appreciates the extent of predicted schools reserve usage, its effect of forecast outturn reserve levels and the related anticipation that a further 6 schools will be in a deficit position by end of 2016-17.

4. That Cabinet considers the capital monitoring, specific over and underspends, and importantly that Cabinet recognises the risk associated with having to rely on a use of capital receipts in the year of sale and the potential for this to have significant revenue pressures should receipts be delayed and temporary borrowing be required.

5. That Cabinet approves an additional investment of £30,000 into the Disabled Facilities Grant capital budget in order to respond to demands being placed on the current programme, funded by a virement from existing Highways Maintenance and Access for All budgets.

6. That Cabinet approves a £30k increase to Woodstock Way linkage scheme afforded by an equivalent underspend to another area improvement scheme (Abergavenny).

Member Scrutiny:

In respect to slippage a member voiced their frustration and asked that managers were more careful in valuing their works in the first instance.

Referring to the action list from the previous meeting the officer was asked for an update regarding Raglan market and we were told this will be to follow.

Borough Theatre was noted as a shortfall in income against income targets, a member thought we had divested ourselves by now and asked the current position. We were told that prior to 2013 the council had entered inti a trust arrangement with the theatre which meant it paid a management fee to the theatre annually which is on a declining basis.

Referring to Mandate B11, the senior leadership review, it was asked why we had not achieved the saving. The Officer answered that the saving was a presumption and would not be achieved.

A Member stressed the importance of staff joining the pension scheme and asked what steps the HR team are taking to encourage staff to join.

A Member asked for an analysis of the whole building, the market hall and the theatre.