Agenda item

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2020/114

Contact: Hannah Doney, Head of Corporate Finance Tel: 07584 174654

Report by Director of Finance (CA7 ).

On 21 July 2020 Cabinet agreed to ask officers to identify plans to address the potential overspend in 2020/21 arising from COVID-19 and report back to the next meeting with recommendations for action.  This report sets out a proposal for a revisions to the budget for 2020/21 which is the outcome of that work.  The revised budget will address the risk of overspend and reflects the additional costs incurred by the Council in the response phase to the COVID-19 pandemic and the additional funding that has been received from central government.   

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

(a)   approve the creation of the Council Tax Collection Fund Reserve

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to RECOMMEND COUNCIL TO:

(b)   approve the savings set out in Annex 1

(c)   approve the revised revenue budget for 2020/21 set out in Annex 2

Councillor Sobia Afridi was unavailable to speak.

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chairman of the Performance Scrutiny Committee, summarised the response from the scrutiny committee’s discussion of the Revised Budget which was included in the Addenda.

Councillor Steve Harrod responded that the consultation on the Youth Fund will now take place mostly online which will be much less costly.  It will be delayed by Covid but they are not cutting back on level or detail.  He expects the feedback to be available by Christmas.

Councillor Mark Gray added that it had already been decided that the full £200,000 was not needed.  It is out to tender now.  It will not be in time for the 2021/22 budget but some provision will be made for it.

Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale responded on the SEND issue.  There was now a new management team in place for Education and she was pleased to announce a new appointment of an SEND Manager who is coming with great experience in the area.

The Chairman thanked Councillor Brighouse for the feedback from the Performance Scrutiny Committee which will be taken into account before the revised budget goes to Full Council.  He also thanked staff members for the additional work required during the pandemic but also for keeping normal services going.

While the Government had provided extra funding, there was still a shortfall and they would continue to lobby for more support.  It was vital that the Council should be in a strong financial position, especially if there is a second spike in Covid.

Councillor David Bartholomew introduced the report and summarised the main provisions.

Councillor Gray asked if there was more information available on the income guarantee scheme announced about six weeks before.  Councillor Bartholomew responded that there will be a claim made in September which is expected to be paid in October and then there will be further claims made in December and April.

Cabinet Members highlighted some points in their portfolios as follows:

·         Councillor Ian Corkin noted that some of the additional costs arose from the customer service centre dealing with shielding residents which included making 12,000 proactive calls to vulnerable residents.  This was assisted by staff from the library service.  There has recently been a 30% increase in calls relating to adult social services and it is anticipated that there will be an impact on children’s services when schools reopen.

·         Councillor Judith Heathcoat stated that the revised budget will still enable the fire service to maintain safety and efficiency.  The delay of one year in renewal of engines will not have a major impact as there is flexibility in the contract.

·         Councillor Steve Harrod applauded officers for finding ways to reduce costs without making any cuts to services but by redesigning.

·         Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale referred to the proposal not to fill the School Improvement Advisor position until March next year.  She said that this was a post they had been unable to fill and they were confident that existing officers could cope with the workload.

·         Councillor Lawrie Stratford noted that an announcement was imminent from the Minister regarding the future of Public Health and they were still awaiting details on Test and Trace.  He stated that some of the savings in his area were the result of being unable to deliver some services as many are face-to-face.  They will continue to support care homes but if they need more money there must be clarity on where it is going.  The latest figures show that Delayed Transfers of Care are currently just 10% of the figure three years ago.

Councillor Heathcoat added that in relation to vacancies across all services there was currently a pause while directors examine how we deliver services going forward.

RESOLVED: to

a)               approve the creation of the Council Tax Collection Fund Reserve

and RECOMMEND COUNCIL TO:

b)               approve the savings set out in Annex 1

c)               approve the revised revenue budget for 2020/21 set out in Annex 2