Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2023/050

Contact: Kathy Wilcox, Head of Financial Strategy, Kathy.Wilcox@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Finance (CA8)

To note and seek agreement of the report and any recommendations.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

a)    agree the virements in Annex 1a and supplementary estimate request in Annex 1c and note the virements in Annex 1b.

b)    note the additional one-off funding of £5.0m in 2023/24, notified since the budget was agreed by Council on 14 February 2023.

c)    noting the inflation and demand pressures contributing to the forecast overspend of £14.4m set out in the Business Management & Monitoring Report to Cabinet in March 2023, agree to top up general balances to the 2023/24 risk assessed level of £30.2m depending on the year end position for 2022/23. 

d)    agree to transfer the remaining additional funding expected for 2023/24 to the corporate contingency budget.

e)    agree the update to High Needs DSG budgets following the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s approval of the transfer of £2.3m funding from the Schools Block to High Needs.

Recommendations approved.

Cabinet had before it a report which set out details of funding notified to the Council since the 2023/24 budget was agreed as well as other changes and risks which would need to be managed in 2023/24 and in the context of the Medium Term Financial Strategy. It also included an update on funding for the Early Intervention programme which was part of the 2023/24 budget for High Needs.

Councillor Calum Miller, Cabinet Member for Finance, introduced the report.  He highlighted the additional funding which provided an overall improvement in the Council’s financial position and outlined how these funds would be allocated and the virements proposed in the report.

Councillor Miller moved and Councillor Brighouse seconded he recommendations in the report, and they were approved.

RESOLVED to

a)    agree the virements in Annex 1a and supplementary estimate request in Annex 1c and note the virements in Annex 1b.

b)    note the additional one-off funding of £5.0m in 2023/24, notified since the budget was agreed by Council on 14 February 2023.

c)    noting the inflation and demand pressures contributing to the forecast overspend of £14.4m set out in the Business Management & Monitoring Report to Cabinet in March 2023, agree to top up general balances to the 2023/24 risk assessed level of £30.2m depending on the year end position for 2022/23. 

d)    agree to transfer the remaining additional funding expected for 2023/24 to the corporate contingency budget.

e)    agree the update to High Needs DSG budgets following the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s approval of the transfer of £2.3m funding from the Schools Block to High Needs.