Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Cabinet Member for Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2021/048

Contact: Louise Tustian, Head of Insight & Corporate Programmes Tel: 07741 607452/Kathy Wilcox, Chief Accountant Tel: 07788 302163

Report by Corporate Director Customers & Organisational Development and Director of Finance.

This report sets out Oxfordshire County Council’s (OCC’s) progress towards the Corporate Plan priorities for 2021/22 – July 2021. This Cabinet report will concentrate on the latest performance and risk position (July 21).

Cabinet is RECOMMENDED:

a)            To note July business management and monitoring report.

b)           To approve virements set out in Annex 2b which include transferring £1m from the Covid-19 reserve to fund relevant expenditure within the directorates as set out in Annex C paragraph 72.

c)            To approve the revised Music Service fees and charges as set out in Annex C paragraph 85 and Annex C-5.

Recommendations agreed.

Cabinet considered a report setting out Oxfordshire County Council’s (OCC’s) progress towards the Corporate Plan priorities for 2021/22 – July 2021.

Councillor David Bartholomew, Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, noted that of the planned directorate savings for this year 24% were rated Amber and 1% Red.  He expected that the Cabinet Member for Finance would keep a close eye on those.

Councillor Bartholomew drew attention to an error in the table on Agenda Page 72.  The variation on Children’s Services should have been 0.7m, not zero.

Councillor Bartholomew asked the Cabinet Member for Finance to explain how a budget of £0.1m on Growth and Economy could become an estimated spend of £1m.  He also asked if the Corporate Contingency Budget would be able to accommodate the recent increases in inflation since the report was written.

Councillor Calum Miller, Cabinet Member for Finance, responded that the overspend of £1m was due to unanticipated consultancy costs related to the large number of infrastructure and other projects inherited from the previous administration.  He had also recently commissioned advice on inflationary pressures and looked forward to the efforts of national government to tackle these pressures.

Councillor Miller noted that the two biggest pressures were currently in children’s services and construction.  However, there was adequate space in the balances to accommodate any potential pressures in the course of the year.

Councillor Duncan Enright, Cabinet Member for Travel and Development Strategy confirmed that the risks surrounding construction, resources and skills shortages were being monitored closely.

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Cabinet Member for Children, Education and Young People’s Services, in relation to High Needs Block Funding, reported that proposals were being developed for consultation that would help the most vulnerable young people.  The long-promised review by central government had been put back to Spring 2022 at the earliest.

Councillor Brighouse noted that, although the new Family Safeguarding service had helped, the number of referrals to the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) had increased by 66% since pre-pandemic.  The skills and knowledge were there to tackle the challenges but what was needed was central government funding.

RESOLVED:

a)            To note July business management and monitoring report.

b)           To approve virements set out in Annex 2b which include transferring £1m from the Covid-19 reserve to fund relevant expenditure within the directorates as set out in Annex C paragraph 72;

c)            To approve the revised Music Service fees and charges as set out in Annex C paragraph 85 and Annex C-5.