Issue - meetings

Cabinet received a report on the 3-year revenue budget for 2022/23 to 2024/25 and 4-year capital programme for Buckinghamshire Council covering the period to 2025/26.  These proposals were based on the latest known funding position, service budget pressures and the key financial risks facing the Council both now and in the future. They also took account of the findings from the recent budget scrutiny inquiry.

The Council Tax Resolution report would be presented as a separate report as part of the budget to Council in February and would contain the final information from the other precepting authorities leading to the total Council Tax for the area, which Full Council would be required to approve.

The report included Special Expenses that were particular costs specific to an area not covered by a local town or parish council (e.g. recreational grounds, allotments, community centres markets etc.) There were three special expense areas within the overall Council area; High Wycombe Town Committee, West Wycombe Church Yard and Aylesbury Town. The proposed budgets and precepts were presented in Appendix 5.

Although the current Government’s 3-year Spending Review covered a 3-year period, the Local Government Settlement announcements were only for 2022/23.  This reflected the significant changes that were planned to Local Government funding for 2023/24.  These changes would not impact the quantum of funding available to Local Government, but rather the mechanism (the Fair Funding Review) and policy objectives (Levelling Up) to be funded through the previously announced funding envelope.

Whilst recognising the ongoing impact of Covid-19 on Local Authorities the provisional settlement did not include any specific funding for the ongoing impacts of the pandemic.  Given the current Government approach of one-off interventions when circumstances required national policy intervention it was likely that if impacts increased in future years then specific one-off funding would be announced alongside any response measures.

RESOLVED –

That Council be recommended to:

(1)          Approve the Revenue Budget and Capital Programme (Appendices 1-3).

(2)          Approve the ‘Special Expenses’ budgets, precepts and associated services for Aylesbury Town, High Wycombe Town and West Wycombe Church Yard (Appendices 5 & 6).

(3)          Support the proposal to delegate to Cabinet decisions to add up to £100m to the Capital Programme, to be funded by Prudential Borrowing, subject to a robust business case being approved.

(4)          Approve the Council Tax Reduction Scheme Policy (Appendix 7).

(5)          Delegate authority to the Leader, in consultation with the s.151 Officer, to make any technical changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme as required from legislation concerning the £150 Council Tax Energy Rebate Scheme, together with any changes required to implement any new discretionary schemes linked to the discretionary funding allocated. 

(6)          Approve the Schedule of Fees & Charges as set out in Appendix 8.

(7)          Note that a supplementary report, the formal Council Tax Resolution, will accompany the final budget to full Council.

Cabinet received a report on the 3-year revenue budget for 2022/23 to 2024/25 and 4-year capital programme for Buckinghamshire Council covering the period to 2025/26.  These proposals were based on the latest known funding position, service budget pressures and the key financial risks facing the Council both now and in the future. They also took account of the findings from the recent budget scrutiny inquiry.

The Council Tax Resolution report would be presented as a separate report as part of the budget to Council in February and would contain the final information from the other precepting authorities leading to the total Council Tax for the area, which Full Council would be required to approve.

The report included Special Expenses that were particular costs specific to an area not covered by a local town or parish council (e.g. recreational grounds, allotments, community centres markets etc.) There were three special expense areas within the overall Council area; High Wycombe Town Committee, West Wycombe Church Yard and Aylesbury Town. The proposed budgets and precepts were presented in Appendix 5.

Although the current Government’s Spending Review covered a 3-year period, the Local Government Settlement announcements were only from 2022/23.  This reflected the significant changes that were planned to Local Government funding from 2023/24.  These changes would not impact the quantum of funding available to Local Government, but rather the mechanism (the Fair Funding Review) and policy objectives (Levelling Up) to be funded through the previously announced funding envelope.

Whilst recognising the ongoing impact of Covid-19 on Local Authorities the provisional settlement did not include any specific funding for the ongoing impacts of the pandemic.  Given the current Government approach of one-off interventions when circumstances required national policy intervention it was likely that if impacts increased in future years then specific one-off funding would be announced alongside any response measures.

The Leader made the following points in presenting the budget:-

·         The Council had been working to provide services whilst dealing with the pandemic for the past two years and this had produced a significant impact on the Council’s income e.g. car parking (£1.2 million a month pre-pandemic), leisure centres, commercial and rental investments. It was uncertain whether these levels of income which helped support frontline services, would ever return to historical levels.

·         Uncertainty around Government funding which was only for one year although the Council had undertaken a three-year budgeting process for the revenue budget in line with the timeframes of the government’s Spending Review announced in October 2021. Reference was made to the Levelling up agenda where priority had been given to the Midlands and the North of England and the Fair Funding Review currently being undertaken.

·         Significant upturn in demand for Council Services, particularly increases in social care costs following Covid, significant additional referrals for children and also adults, with increasingly complex cases. Protecting the vulnerable remained a key priority for the Council.

·         There was a weakened provider market for those who provided domiciliary services or care homes for short or long  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9