Issue - items at meetings - Capital Programme Monitoring Report

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2022/094

Contact: Kathy Wilcox, Head of Financial Strategy, 07788 302163

Report by Director of Finance (CA8).

Financial Report on capital spending against budget allocations, including any necessary capital programme approvals.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

OCC Capital Programme

1. Approve the latest capital monitoring position for 2022/23 (Annex 1) and the associated updated capital programme at Annex 2, incorporating the changes set out in this report

2. Note the approval made under delegated authority of the Leader of the Council for:

a) New Heyford Primary School (paragraph 26)

b) Heyford Park School Expansion (paragraph 28)

3. To note:

c) increase of £0.360m to the Active Travel Programme (Tranche 2) funded from the Budget Priorities Reserve (paragraph 34)

d) the inclusion of the Department for Transport (DfT) grant of £32.8m into the capital programme following the Cabinet Report on 18 October 2022 as funding towards the Zero Emission Bus Regional Area (paragraph 37).

e) progress on the Structural Maintenance 2022/23 Milestones (Annex 3):

f) funding of £0.185m towards the Highway Tree Planting programme funded from the Budget Priorities Reserve (paragraph 52)

Re-profiling

4. Agree the in-year re-profiling as identified in the report and (Annex 1 and 2)

Funding

5. Note the following grant funding updates and allocations:

a) Housing & Growth Deal (paragraph 39)

b) Children Homes (paragraph 66),

c) Safer Roads (paragraphs 71),

Recommendations approved with one amendment to recommendation 2: insert “Deputy” before “Leader”.

Cabinet had before it a report setting out the monitoring position based on activity to the end of October 2022 - the third update for 2022/23. It also included an update to the Capital Programme approved by Cabinet in October 2022 taking into account additional funding and new and/or changes to schemes.

Councillor Calum Miller, Cabinet Member for Finance, introduced the report. He highlighted that the total forecast programme expenditure had reduced by £33.1m compared to the most recently agreed programme. The largest contribution to this came from Major Infrastructure projects. The reasons were explained in paragraphs 30 to 35.

On the positive side, Councillor Miller noted the successes in obtaining £32.8m in government grants for zero-emission buses and £5.2m matched funding for new children’s homes. Also, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities had confirmed that it will pay the final £30m instalment of the Housing & Growth Deal and the implications of that will be outlined in the next report.

Cabinet Members made the following comments:

· It was disappointing that the construction phase of the Wantage Eastern Link Road had been pushed back to summer 2023 and it was hoped that there would be no further delays as the housing it was to cater for was well under way.

· It had been a major achievement to secure the funding for zero-emission buses and it was a testament to the Council’s determination to pursue its policies, the hard work of officers and the partnership working with bus companies.

It was agreed that recommendation 2 should refer to the “Deputy Leader” rather than the “Leader”.

The recommendations as amended were proposed by Councillor Miller, seconded by Councillor Phillips and agreed.

RESOLVED to: