Venue: Room 2&3 - County Hall, New Road, Oxford OX1 1ND. View directions
Contact: Scrutiny Team E-Mail: scrutiny@oxfordshire.gov.uk
Link: videolink to meeting
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Apologies for Absence and Temporary Appointments To receive any apologies for absence and temporary appointments. Minutes: Apologies were received from Cllr Middleton and from Cllr Miller, substituted by Cllr Hannaby.
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Declaration of Interests See guidance note on the back page. Minutes: There were none. |
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The Committee is recommended to APPROVE the minutes of the meeting held on 06 December 2024 and to receive information arising from them. Minutes: The minutes of the meeting on the 6th December 2024 were AGREED as a true and accurate record.
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Petitions and Public Address Members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection.
To facilitate ‘hybrid’ meetings we are asking that requests to speak or present a petition are submitted by no later than 9am four working days before the meeting i.e., 9am on 13 January 2025. Requests to speak should be sent to the Scrutiny Officer at scrutiny@oxfordshire.gov.uk.
If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that your views are taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.
Minutes: Mr David Hearn addressed the committee to highlight the reduction in the number of public toilets at the Westgate library after refurbishment, which had led to long queues, especially on Mondays and Wednesdays when children visit the library. Mr Hearn urged the committee to address the budget for public toilet provision and to review their management.
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Updated Funding and Budget Proposals 2025/26 to 2027/28 All Cabinet Members and Directors have been invited to attend and present their relevant areas of the Updated Funding and Budget Proposals 2025/26 to 2027/28
The Committee is asked to consider the report and raise any questions, and to AGREE any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet and Council arising therefrom. Additional documents:
Minutes: Cllr Liz Leffman, Leader of the Council, Cllr Dan Levy, Cabinet Member for Finance, Lorna Baxter, Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer, Stephen Chandler, Executive Director of People and Transformation, and Robin Rogers, Director of Economy and Place, were invited to attend and present the updated funding and budget proposals 2025/26 to 2027/28.
i. Budget Overview
The Executive Director of Resources and section 151 Officer provided an overview of the developments to the funding and budget proposals 2025/26 to 2027/28, since the previous budget scrutiny meeting in December. In December the budget was reported with a deficit of £25.2 million. This was due to the assumption of no funding changes from 2024-25 because of uncertainties in council tax increases and government grants.
Since that meeting central government had confirmed the final funding settlement, and the proposed increases to council tax had been added to the budget proposals. These developments allowed the Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer to confirm the following changes to the budget proposals.
The social care grant increased to £880 million nationally, resulting in an additional £10.8 million for the council compared to the Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS). The improved Better Care Fund (iBCF) and Adult Social Care (ASC) Discharge Fund merged into the Better Care Grant, continuing at the 2024-25 levels, with no impact on the MTFS. It was also reported that, due to the funding formula, Oxfordshire would not see any of the new £600 million Recovery Grant.
The new Children’s Social Care Prevention Grant, of £250 million, was to be distributed on a new needs-based formula, with £1.4 million expected to fund new activity related to the roll out of family help. The New Homes Bonus was also reported to be continued, with an additional £1.1 million in one-off funding.
With the Employers National Insurance increase, only direct costs were to be covered by the national funding of £515 million, which LGA estimates of the actual cost being £637 million. Based off this estimate the Chief Executive of Resources estimated that Oxfordshire would only receive 80% of the estimated £3.9 million of costs, roughly £3.1 million of funding.
The Settlement Funding Assessment (SFA) was also confirmed to be £600,000 lower than the estimated £80 million. However, this was offset by a higher-than-expected income from Section 31 grants for business rates, resulting in no overall impact on the business rates funding.
The most significant change to the updated funding and budget proposals was the changes to council tax. The administration proposed a 4.99% increase in council tax for 2025-26. This includes a 2.99% increase for general council tax and a 2% increase for the adult social care precept.
This increase was expected to generate an additional £15.2 million in ongoing funding from 2025-26. The tax base was expected to grow by 1.87% in 2025-26, higher than the initially estimated 1.75%, providing an additional £700,000 in income.
The combination of increased council tax, changes in the tax base, and additional ... view the full minutes text for item 5/25 |
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Committee Action and Recommendation Tracker The Committee is recommended to NOTE the progress of previous recommendations and actions arising from previous meetings, having raised any questions on the contents. Minutes: The Committee NOTED the action and recommendation tracker.
The Committee also AGREED that they would like updates on recommendation responses periodically following their acceptance by Cabinet, and that the tracker required spring cleaning and updating.
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Committee Forward Work Plan The Committee is recommended to AGREE its work programme for forthcoming meetings, having heard any changes from previous iterations, and taking account of the Cabinet Forward Plan and of the Budget Management Monitoring Report (BMMR).
The BMMR can be found under item 154/24 following the link: https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=115&MId=7473&Ver=4
Minutes: A debate arose about holding a meeting on February 21st. Some members emphasised the importance of formal committee consideration for recommendations and transparency, while others expressed concerns about the fluidity of commercial property transactions and the practicality of scheduling a meaningful discussion. It was proposed that an all-member briefing would be more inclusive and suitable for topics like the sale of County Hall and devolution.
It was NOTED that the committee had the full intention for the items on the sale of County Hall, and the proposals for Oxfordshire devolution to be full member briefing items.
The Committee AGREED to the forward workplan, subject to the removal of the provisional meeting on 21st February.
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Responses to Scrutiny Recommendations Attached is the Cabinet response to the Performance and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee report on Community Wealth Building and Wider Socia Value. The Committee is asked to NOTE the response. Minutes: The Committee NOTED the response to scrutiny recommendations on Community Wealth Building and Wider Social Value.
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