Note: The
special circumstances for non-compliance with Council Procedure
Rule 3, Access to Information Procedure Rule 5 and Section 100B(4)
of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), (items not
considered unless the agenda is open to inspection at least five
days in advance of the meeting) were that the government’s
Spending Review was announced on 25 November and additional time
was needed to analyse the headline impact on local authorities and
include this in the report.
FOR GENERAL
RELEASE
1
PURPOSE OF REPORT AND POLICY CONTEXT
1.1
This report provides an update on the resource position as far as
it is known including changes in assumptions and the key headlines
from the Spending Review announcement. It also includes revised
estimates of demographic and cost trends based on the latest
information and forecasts. At this stage, tax base estimates have
not been revised as updated data and analysis is not yet
available.
1.2
This year has clearly been unprecedented and has resulted in very
large additional costs and income losses for the council for which
the government have provided local authorities with significant
support and compensation. For this council there remain many
challenges and unknowns going forward and the key areas of risk are
therefore identified and discussed in the report.
1.3
Members will be aware that the pandemic has also impacted on the
normal budget planning timetable and therefore this report does not
contain a full set of draft budget proposals at this stage. While
investment and service pressure requirements in priority areas have
been estimated, the full range of potential savings is still being
worked up and this process is delayed by approximately one month.
However, some proposals that are more developed are included here
in the interests of sharing information as soon as practicable
while the timetable for completing the 2021/22 process is set out
in the report.
1.4
In the interim, high level budget strategies are provided at
Appendix 1 that set out the service and financial context for each
of the council’s service directorates together with the
approach each directorate is taking to service delivery and
supporting the council’s Corporate Plan priorities. Areas of
focus for potential savings that are currently in development are
also discussed. The Budget Strategies will ultimately form part of
the council’s Budget Book which will be included in the final
budget proposals to Budget Council.
1.5
The provisional Local Government Finance Settlement is not normally
made available until December each year. The full impact of the
settlement as well as the full set of draft budget proposals and
Equality Impact Assessments will come to the January Policy &
Resources Committee along with the tax base estimates as required
by statute. The outcome of the current Council Tax Reduction Scheme
consultation will also come to the January meeting. Final budget
proposals will come to the February Policy & Resources
Committee and Budget Council as normal.
2
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the Policy & Resources Committee:
2.1
Notes the updated forecasts and latest resource information set out
in the report.
2.2
Notes the Draft Budget Strategies at Appendix 1 including the areas
of focus for potential savings.
2.4
Notes that the full set of draft budget proposals and Equality
Impact Assessments will be brought the January Policy &
Resources Committee together with an update on the provisional
Local Government Financial Settlement.
2.5
Notes the revised timetable including the impact on proposed
consultation timelines set out in Section 7.
2.6
Notes that subsequent decisions, updated financial data and
information from central government regarding the Local Government
Financial Settlement (LGFS) are likely to impact further on the
development of budget proposals for 2021/22.
2.7
Agrees to the un-pausing and continued pausing of the capital
schemes as set out in paragraph 5.18.
3
FINANCIAL CONTEXT AND RISKS
3.1
Effective financial planning has become increasingly important over
recent years due to the increasing financial challenges facing the
council. Failure to effectively manage the council’s finances
will ultimately impact on service delivery and has serious
reputational implications, potentially leading to government
intervention. The financial impact of the pandemic has brought
financial resilience to the fore and many authorities are now
concerned about the level of reserves available to maintain their
financial stability. Recent examples of financial scrutiny or
intervention relating to local authorities include:
·
An external audit Public Interest Report followed by a Statutory
Section 114 report being issued by the Chief Finance Officer (CFO)
of Croydon LBC to restrict all spending, bringing with it
associated media and reputational impact;
·
Various objections to local authorities’ statements of
accounts, particularly concerning financing decisions and
commercial property deals, requiring investigation and adjudication
by external auditors;
·
Various legal challenges from residents in respect of council
decisions, particularly where urgent cuts have had to be approved
to balance the books, most notably the upheld legal challenge to
Bristol City Council regarding proposed reductions to
children’s disability budgets;
·
Intervention by government in respect of failing services where
they can appoint commissioners to take over whole services, notably
Doncaster Met which narrowly avoided Secretary of State
intervention in Children’s Services by agreeing to create a
new trust;
·
In the severest case, Northamptonshire, direct intervention by
government will result in dissolution of the authority and creation
of two new unitary authorities from April 2021.
3.2
The case of Croydon LBC is worthy of note having recently been
issued with a Section 114 report by their CFO. The report indicates
that the authority has seen its reserves depleted by over
£40m within 4 years, accompanied by increasing overspends
across social care services while also under-achieving its planned
savings programmes. It also entered into substantial housing and
property arrangements which have resulted in very large borrowing
debt and which are now being reviewed independently by the Local
Government Association.
3.3
In their annual reviews, external auditors are therefore
increasingly concerned with local authorities’ arrangements
for securing value for money which includes demonstrating financial
resilience and sustainability by providing evidence of effective
medium term planning. In the current context, External Auditors
will also be looking closely at authorities’ plans and
approaches for managing the ongoing impacts of the pandemic,
particularly taxation (Collection Fund) deficits.
·
The likely requirement to plan for the repayment of reserves over
the next few years, particularly in respect of Collection Fund
taxation losses experienced this year due to the pandemic (and
possibly next year if Council Tax Reduction claimant numbers remain
high due to slow economic recovery);
·
Current and projected pressures on Adult Social Care resulting in
overspending last year, projected overspending this year and
significant cost pressures next year which are significantly higher
than the available funding announced in the Spending Review;
·
The numbers of people supported in, and the cost of, Emergency and
Temporary Accommodation and associated support services which have
been increasing year-on-year and have only been manageable through
additional Homelessness Flexibility Grant awards. Although funding
has been received to meet accommodation costs through the pandemic,
if people are not successfully ‘moved on’ to
sustainable accommodation or settings, this will increase baseline
numbers further and the impact on the council’s budget will
be potentially very substantial over the next few years. Officers
will continue to monitor the number of homeless households
approaching the council for support, the cost of this support and
the availability of government revenue and capital funding, and
will report back to Housing Committee to advise on whether or not
the council’s approach to dealing with homelessness is
financially sustainable;
·
The council’s funding base is increasingly reliant on income
from fees and charges, particularly parking and permit revenues.
Fees & Charges are related to visitor and economic activity and
behaviours, which can change over time potentially affecting income
levels. The council’s relatively high level of fees &
charges is evidenced by the compensation grant for losses of Sales,
Fees & Charges caused by the pandemic for which this council
received the 5th largest amount in the country. The
council therefore needs to monitor trends in activity and behaviour
and consider the potential impact on future income levels;
·
The council’s commercial property portfolio, which provides
substantial rental income of over £9m, is known to be highly
geared toward the retail sector, which had been declining prior to
the pandemic and may now be further impacted in the medium term,
particularly as government rate relief support falls away. This
could put pressure on commercial rent incomes in future;
·
The council is highly reliant on suppliers and providers who may be
impacted by Brexit either in terms of the cost of supplies or cost
of labour, or the impact on supply chains. This could result in
increased contractual costs for the council.
3.5
Not addressing these risks and challenges in a planned and timely
way over the medium term would inevitably lead to a depletion of
reserves and the potential to invite scrutiny from the external
auditor in the first instance with, ultimately, further action from
the auditor and statutory S151 Chief Finance Officer if robust
short and medium term plans were not in evidence.
4
RESOURCES AND PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS 2021/22
Spending Review Headlines
4.1
The government confirmed that the Spending review on the 25
November 2020 will be for 2021/22 only and included key information
that will inform the provisional Local Government Finance
Settlement (LGFS) for 2021/22. This means that details of
government funding for councils is not likely to be announced until
later in December.
4.2
The Spending Review only provides high level information and does
not indicate the precise distribution of resources to individual
councils, however, the key headlines from the announcement are as
follows:
·
An allowable 3% Adult Social Care precept which could provide an
additional £4.4m;
·
Additional Adult Social Care grant funding worth potentially
£1.5m;
·
A share of £1.55bn additional Covid-19 pressure funding
which could provide between £6.2 to £7.5m depending on
the distribution method;
·
Funding provision for 75% of irrecoverable losses of Council Tax
and Business Rate Retention income (i.e. the Collection Fund
deficits) in 2020/21. This is significant and could be worth up to
£8.7m one-off against the projected Collection Fund
deficits.
·
Continued provision of the compensation grant for losses of Sales,
Fees & Charges income for the 1st quarter of 2021/22 reducing
the risks of potential income losses next year;
·
A public sector pay freeze excluding the NHS and also providing
£250 for staff paid £24,000 per annum or less;
·
Homelessness and Rough sleeping funding of £151m extra
nationally in 2021/22. The distribution of this is unknown at
present but should provide a minimum of £1m;
·
Continuation of the Hardship Fund next year to support working age
Council Tax Reduction claimants through an increase to the
discount;
·
Confirmation that the Troubled Families and additional Adult Social
Care grant awarded in 2020/21 will be continued;
·
Confirmation of removing access to PWLB loans for councils with
commercial plans;
·
More positively, reduction of the PWLB borrowing rate for the
General Fund by 1% to be in line with the borrowing rate currently
available to the HRA.
4.3
The impact on the council’s planning assumptions that can be
inferred from the Spending Review announcement are as follows:
·
The pay award built into the 2021/22 planning assumptions was 2.2%.
The pay freeze, after providing for the Living Wage increase and
allowing for a similar increase to the proposed public sector pay
award for staff paid less than £24,000 will potentially
reduce the cost of the pay award and would therefore reduce the
budget gap by an estimated of £2.2m. Note, however, that
local government pay is negotiated separately from public sector
pay;
·
The predicted level of additional grant support was £11m
including £4m for Adult Social Care (ASC), £6m for
ongoing Covid-19 pressures, and £1m for Troubled Families.
This was after assuming continuation of the additional Adult Social
Care grant awarded in 2020/21 which has been confirmed. If the 3%
ASC Precept is taken up, the overall Spending Review outcome
indicates that additional funding of at least £14m should be
available, providing a minimum additional £3m compared to the
level of funding built into the 2021/22 planning assumptions.
·
The forecast Collection Fund deficit that needs to be repaid over
the next few years is currently £11.818m. The Spending Review
provides that 75% of the deficit will be funded which is worth
approximately £8.7m and this reduces the call on one-off
resources (reserves) accordingly.
·
The level of New Homes Bonus assumed was £0.972m based on
legacy payments from previous allocations; the Spending Review
confirmed this funding for 2021/22.
4.4
Overall, the Spending Review could potentially improve the
council’s resources when compared with the resource
assumptions reported to this committee in July as follows:
|
Table 1:
Spending Review
Assumptions (Recurrent Funding)
|
Assumed
£m
|
Minimum
SR2020 £m
|
Maximum
SR2020
£m
|
|
Additional Social Care funding
|
4.000
|
1.500
|
1.500
|
|
Additional Social Care Precept at 3% (if
approved)
|
4.400
|
4.400
|
|
Additional ongoing support for Covid-19
impact
|
6.000
|
6.200
|
7.500
|
|
Trouble Families Grant continuation
|
1.000
|
1.000
|
1.000
|
|
Homelessness/Rough Sleeping
|
0
|
1.000
|
1.500
|
|
Resources released by pay restrictions
|
0
|
2.190
|
2.190
|
|
Total
|
11.000
|
16.290
|
18.090
|
|
Increase in
Resources compared with Spending Review Assumptions
|
-
|
5.290
|
7.090
|
4.5
The impact of the projected resource changes emanating from the
Spending Review on the council’s predicted budget gap for
2021/22 is set out in the table at paragraph 4.12 below.
Updated Investments
& Service Pressures
4.1
In the July budget planning and resource update to Policy &
Resources Committee, 3 scenarios were set out for the potential
investment requirement to support priority services, unavoidable
pressures and Corporate Plan priorities. The ‘Moderate
View’ estimates were used for planning purposes as shown
below. As normal, these have now been revisited based on latest
trends and financial data and the position is shown below
indicating an increase in recurrent (ongoing) pressures of around
£2.8m and significant one-off Covid pressures trailing into
2021/22 of over £6m.
4.2
There is still considerable work needed to fully understand
emerging pressures in the Economy, Environment & Culture (EEC)
directorate and the Housing, Neighbourhoods & Communities
directorate in terms of whether or not these will be ongoing
pressures or are one-off pressures. For example, currently the
level of people accommodated in emergency and temporary
accommodation is now significantly above the core budget and
without significant numbers of people being helped to ‘move
on’ to sustainable accommodation, this could become an
ongoing pressure. Similarly, some of the pressures across a number
of EEC services may be able to be accommodated through other
funding mechanisms including capital funding which is currently
being explored. An estimate of the level of underlying (i.e.
ongoing) and one-off pressures has been provided below.
|
Table 2:
Investments & Service Pressures
|
Assumed Recurrent Pressure Funding
2021/22
(July)
|
Latest Recurrent Pressures
Identified
|
Latest Short Term Covid Pressures &
(one-off) Pressures
|
|
|
£m
|
£m
|
£m
|
|
Health & Adult
Social Care
|
12.700
|
12.700
|
-
|
|
Families, Children
& Learning (incl. Troubled Families)
|
6.000
|
6.603
|
0.400
|
|
Environment Economy
&Culture
|
-
|
1.530
|
2.700
|
|
Housing,
Neighbourhoods & Communities
|
-
|
1.500
|
2.000
|
|
All Other
Services
|
0.500
|
0.496
|
0.370
|
|
Corporate Plan
Priorities
|
1.000
|
1.200
|
0.330
|
|
Allowance for
ongoing PPE costs
|
0.500
|
-
|
0.500
|
|
Land Charges
Transfer
|
0.500
|
0.500
|
-
|
|
Financing
Costs
|
0.500
|
-
|
0.500
|
|
Total
|
21.700
|
24.529
|
6.800
|
4.3
The table indicates a very high level investment requirement of
over £30 million across both ongoing and one-off pressures
based on current trends and estimates. As can be seen in paragraph
4.12 this increases the recurrent budget gap by £2.829m but
this is more than offset by increased resources provided by the
Spending Review. The one-off pressures, if confirmed, would be a
significant call on one-off resources likely to require internal
borrowing from existing reserves with subsequent repayment.
Investment in Corporate Plan
Priorities
4.4
The original planning assumptions included provision for priority
investments to support key Corporate Plan objectives including
addressing climate change and moving toward a carbon neutral city
by 2030. Proposed investments are set out in the table below
including a tax base change relating to a proposed 2% increase in
the discount provided by the Council Tax Reduction Scheme currently
out for consultation.
|
Table 3:
Proposed Corporate
Plan Investments
|
Annual
Cost
£m
|
One-off Cost *
£m
|
|
Hydrogen feasibility study
|
|
0.030
|
|
Additional spend priority to provide more
provision for support to victims of domestic violence
|
0.050
|
|
|
Expansion of the Sustainable Carbon Reduction
Initiative Fund (SCRIF) financing budget to lever in borrowing for
carbon reduction schemes
|
0.200
|
|
|
Expansion of the warmer homes initiative
(including district heating plans) through an additional financing
budget to lever in more investment
|
0.200
|
|
|
Addition of a Rewilding Officer post to
enhance biodiversity
|
0.040
|
|
|
Investment to provide a focused Race Education
Strategy and delivery
|
0.100
|
|
|
Investment in an Environmental Education
Strategy for the City
|
0
|
0.150
|
|
Creation of a ‘revolving door
fund’ for community wealth building via an on-lending pilot.
Expected to be self-financing.
|
0
|
|
|
Enforcement Officer post for Energy
Performance Certificate (EPC) non-compliance
|
0.045
|
|
|
Expansion of the Housing first scheme to
support a further 10 people
|
0.100
|
|
|
Investment in ‘pocket parks’
|
0.030
|
|
|
Feasibility study for a seafront sustainable
transport corridor
|
0
|
0.030
|
|
Invest to save Adult Social Care –
additional capacity to assist implementation of Better Lives and
other demand and cost control measures
|
0
|
0.120
|
|
Investment in improving school streets
|
0.040
|
|
|
Creation of a new Disability Officer post
|
0.045
|
|
|
Proposed 2% increase in the discount for the
Council Tax Reduction Scheme (tax base change)
|
0.350
|
|
|
TOTAL CORPORATE PLAN
INVESTMENTS
|
1.200
|
0.330
|
* One-off costs will
either be a call on one-off resources or may be funded by the
Modernisation Fund subject to the outturn spend on currently funded
schemes.
Local Government Finance
Settlement and Tax base Forecasts
4.5
As noted above, full details of government funding for councils is
not likely to be announced until later in December. Last year the
government announced a one-year spending review for 2020/21 as an
interim measure due to Brexit which effectively rolled forward
grants received in the previous year with additional funding to
support Adult Social Care.
4.6
A key area is the continuing support for Adult Social Care. The
table below sets out the ongoing funding applicable to Adult Social
Care and the potential resources provided by the Spending
Review:
|
Table 4: Social Care Resources
|
2019/20
|
2020/21
|
2021/22
|
|
ASC Precepting *
|
0%
|
2%
£2.894m
|
3%
£4.400m
|
|
Improved BCF
|
£9.181m
|
£9.181m
|
£9.181m
|
|
Adults & Children’s Social Care grant
|
£2.100m
|
£2.100m
|
£2.100m
|
|
Adult Social Care Grant
|
-
|
£4.715m
|
£4.715m
|
|
New Social Care Grant (SR2020) **
|
-
|
-
|
£1.500m
|
* Subject to full
Council approval for 2021/22
** Estimated distribution of £300m national
funding
4.7
Revenue Support Grant is assumed to continue at the 2020/21 level
of £6.630m.
Council Tax
4.8
The council tax increase for 2021/22 is currently assumed at 1.99%
and the spending review confirmed this would be the maximum
increase without triggering a referendum. This excludes the
potential Adult Social Care precept of 3% which could mean the
overall increase would be 4.99%.
4.9
The ongoing impact of the pandemic on council tax income is
difficult to predict, however there has been a marked increase in
the number of CTR claimants, delays in development completions and
reduced council tax collection, particularly for older debts. Prior
to the pandemic, the assumption on the underlying tax base was an
increase of 0.75% however, given the impacts of Covid-19 and the
likelihood of these impacts continuing into future years, the tax
base estimate has been revised resulting in a reduction of -1.27%.
This assumption will be reviewed with the latest data prior to the
Council Tax Base being presented to this committee in January.
Business
Rates estimate for 2021/22
4.10
Similarly, it is very difficult to predict the ongoing impact of
Covid-19 on businesses within the city and the impact this may have
on the level of business rates income. In 2020/21 the government
announced significant retail reliefs to support business through
the pandemic. These were in excess of £70m which is more than
50% of the total business rates bills within the city. The spending
review included provision for additional targeted rate reliefs for
2021/22 but these will not be announced until the new year. The
assumption is that the government will continue to fully compensate
the council for any additional reliefs provided.
The projections for 2021/22 have been
amended to remove any assumed tax base growth and the inflation
assumption has been reduced to 1% to reflect reductions in RPI.
Business rates would normally increase by CPI with the government
compensating councils for the difference between RPI and CPI
increase however the spending review announced a freeze in the
business rates multiplier which means there won’t be an
inflationary increase for rate payers and councils will be fully
compensated for the loss of revenue. A further 1.4% allowance
has been incorporated for reduced business rates income that could
arise from business failures and bad debts. Business Rates
forecasts continue to be an area of financial risk which is
heightened by the unknown ongoing impacts of the pandemic on
businesses and these estimates could change significantly.
4.11
Council Tax (including Council Tax Reduction) and Business Rates
are key assumptions and estimates which will be reviewed in full
during December using latest trends and information to inform these
tax bases for the report to January Policy & Resources
Committee.
Budget Gap
(Shortfall) 2021/22
4.12
The Moderate View planning scenario in July recommended working on
the basis of a budget shortfall of £17.3m in 2021/22. This is
the assumption that officers are currently using to develop budget
proposals including savings programmes. The final budget gap
projection for 2021/22 will need to be updated but cannot be fully
determined until:
i)
The provisional Local Government Financial Settlement is received
and analysed;
ii)
The Council Tax, Council Tax Reduction and Business Rate tax bases
have been fully revisited in December;
iii) The
Investments & Service Pressures above have been confirmed and
the robustness of estimates reviewed by the Chief Finance
Officer.
|
Table 5: Budget Gap Latest
|
£m
|
|
2021/22 Budget Gap
as at July 2020
|
17.300
|
|
Increase in priority
investments and service pressures (recurrent)
|
+2.829
|
|
Impact of a pay
restrictions on estimates
|
-2.190
|
|
SR2020
additional ASC support
|
-1.500
|
|
Adult Social Care 3%
Precept (if approved)
|
-4.400
|
|
SR2020 improvement
on £6m assumption for additional Covid support
|
-0.200
|
|
Less Assumed ASC SR
Funding
|
+4.000
|
|
Additional
Homelessness and Rough Sleeping funding
|
-1.000
|
|
Budget Gap before Savings Proposals
|
14.839
|
|
Early Draft Saving
Proposals to date (Appendix 2)
|
-6.369
|
|
Remaining Budget Gap
|
8.470
|
4.14
The table above indicates that a maximum budget gap of
£14.839m would need to be addressed, assuming the allowable
3% Adult Social Care Precept is taken up by full Council. This gap
could improve by a further £1.8m subject to the distribution
methods used for the Covid support funding and the Rough Sleeper
funding.
Reserves Position and One-off Funding
Latest Position in 2019/20
4.15
Targeted Budget Management (TBM) is the council’s system of
budget monitoring and the TBM Month 7 (October) report elsewhere on
the agenda shows a projected overspend of £0.030m on the
General Fund, which includes a projected overspend of £0.313m
on the council’s share of NHS controlled s75 partnership
services. The overall overspend shows a substantial improvement of
£7.823m since Month 5 as presented to the Committee in
October and brings the position close to balance. This has resulted
from a combination of effective cost control measures including
negotiated supplier reliefs, application of the furlough scheme
where applicable, and effective deployment and vacancy management
together with significant improvements in income forecasts due to
the busy summer, improved recovery of benefits for emergency
accommodation tenants, increased funding from the NHS, and very
substantial government grant support.
4.16
In terms of service budgets, this puts 2020/21 in a relatively
healthy position in-year, however, a note of caution is required
because the large government grants are likely to be masking
significant underlying pressures including the growth in Adult
Social Care placements, significantly increased numbers of people
accommodated in temporary and emergency provision, and potential
ongoing losses of income for services that may not be able to
operate fully or are impacted by the economic situation.
4.17
The council’s share of the net deficit on the Council Tax and
Business Rates collection funds is forecast to be £11.818m
and must also be funded from one-off resources in the 2021/22
budget. However, the Spending Review 2020 has provided that 75% of
Collection Fund deficits will be funded by government. The
projected deficit and 75% funding are reflected in Table 6.
4.18
The working balance is recommended to continue at a minimum of
£9.0m to meet general risks applicable to a unitary
authority.
4.19
Table 6 identifies potential resources and liabilities that will
need to be taken into account in setting the 2021/22 budget. At
this stage, this assumes that spending in 2020/21 will be in line
with the TBM Month 7 (October) report projections included
elsewhere on this agenda.
4.20
The table shows an estimated shortfall in resources of
£2.984m based on the current TBM (month 7/October) and
collection fund positions and assuming 75% collection fund deficit
funding from government. The potential one-off requirements
identified in the table mean the shortfall in resources increases
to £10.174m. This position is expected to change and will be
updated for the February budget report. The main factors expected
to affect the position are:
·
The latest TBM position which will be updated for month 9
(December). Any improvement to the current overspend forecast will
increase available one-off resources and vice versa;
·
A comprehensive review of reserves and provisions which is
undertaken annually as part of the budget process;
·
A further review of in-year Collection Fund (tax yield)
performance. Any improvement will reduce the shortfall and vice
versa;
·
Updated estimates of short term Covid-19 pressures.
|
Table 6: One-off
resources, liabilities and potential allocations (as at Month
7/October)
|
£m
|
£m
|
|
Unallocated general reserves
|
|
0.000
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue Budget position 2020/21 (TBM):
|
|
|
|
- Forecast outturn
overspend (as at TBM Month 7/October)
|
|
-0.030
|
|
|
|
|
|
In-year Collection Fund
position 2020/21:
|
|
|
|
- Estimated 2020/21
Council Tax collection fund deficit
|
-8.298
|
|
|
- Estimated 202/21
Business Rates Retention collection fund deficit
|
-3.520
|
|
|
Sub-total: Projected In-year Collection Funds
position
|
|
-11.818
|
|
|
|
|
|
Projected One-off
Resources shortfall at start of 2021/22
|
|
-11.848
|
|
75% SR2020 provision for Collection Fund
deficits
|
|
+8.864
|
|
Revised
shortfall
|
|
-2.984
|
|
|
|
|
|
Potential One-off
Allocations in 2021/22:
|
|
|
|
- Latest Short Term
Covid-19 and other one-off service pressures
|
-6.470
|
|
|
- One-off investment in
Corporate Plan priorities
|
-0.330
|
|
|
- Allocation to Council
Tax Reduction Discretionary Fund
|
-0.190
|
|
|
- Allocation to Welfare
Reform Support Fund
|
-0.200
|
|
|
Current One-off
Resources shortfall
|
|
-10.174
|
4.21
The table above clearly indicates a very substantial call on
one-off resources. As indicated above, there are a number of
factors likely to cause a change to these figures while further
work is also needed to fully understand Covid-19 and one-off
pressures and consider options for mitigating some of these
costs.
5
BUDGET STRATEGIES AND PROPOSALS 2021/22
5.1
In July, the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) were instructed to
develop budget proposals working on the assumption of a predicted
£17m ‘moderate view’ budget gap in 2021/22.
Budget proposals are required to take into account a range of
factors including:
i)
Provision for pay, price and pension uplift inflation to ensure
that the budget for all services is maintained in real terms prior
to any decision to change the level of investment;
ii)
An estimate of the level of investment need to meet demographic or
other demand changes and exceptional cost increases, primarily for
statutory or priority services;
iii)
Unavoidable contractual or corporate commitments emanating from
previous decisions, e.g. financing costs of approved capital
schemes, or from legally binding agreements or liabilities;
iv)
Development of savings proposals to meet the projected budget
gap.
5.2
Budget proposals are also developed in the context of the
council’s Corporate Plan and the 6 priorities therein. The
plan is a medium term planning framework through to 2023/24 but
includes objectives that go well beyond this timeframe. Clearly,
not all priorities can be met in full in 2021/22 but many will be
supported by either capital or revenue investment. At this stage,
and in this very unique year, the budget setting process has been
impacted by the pandemic and is approximately one month behind
schedule. Detailed proposals are therefore still being worked
through but directorates have been able to set out high level
budget strategies which are included at Appendix 1.
5.3
The appended Budget Strategies will ultimately form a key part of
the council’s ‘Budget Book’ which provides full
exemplification of all revenue and capital budgets across all
services including the Housing Revenue Account for Council Housing
stock. The Budget Strategies indicate the overall direction of
travel for the delivery of services in each directorate and set out
each directorates’ approach to supporting Corporate Plan
priorities.
5.4
The Budget Strategies also set out the service and financial
context within which each directorate is operating, including any
key demographic, demand or cost pressures affecting statutory or
priority areas and requiring additional investment. They also
indicate where there is a plan or opportunity for capital
investment to meet Corporate Plan priorities, e.g. new build
housing. They also give an indication of ‘Areas of Focus for
Savings’ which are likely to form part of the finalised
budget proposals coming forward to January and February Policy
& Resources Committee and Budget Council.
5.5
In summary, the main areas for savings opportunities being explored
include:
All
Council Services:
·
All services will explore opportunities to generate additional
income from fees & charges. A corporate target of 1% must first
be met but increases above this will normally generate a saving.
Increases in the surplus from on-street parking and permit income
must be applied to transport-related expenditure. However, this
normally releases core council funding currently applied to
transport related services.
·
Many services, across all directorates, will explore opportunities
for service redesign, process efficiency and utilising digital
developments to improve customer service and efficiency. These
savings approaches can be used to improve value for money of
services or provide ‘more for less’. These changes can
have implications for staff and residents requiring consultation
and equality impact assessment.
·
All services will explore opportunities for contract and
procurement savings through the use of competitive procurement
routes and buying frameworks as well as looking for opportunities
for joint procurement with partners, including through the Orbis
partnership.
Health
& Adult Social Care:
·
Implementation of the Better Lives and Stronger Communities Target
Operating Model to help manage demand pressures and improve service
outcomes through preventing admissions to new long term
placements;
·
Optimise home care support to keep people in their own homes to
reduce the current rates of conversion from short term to more
expensive long term placements;
·
Improve market management, including enhanced joint commissioning
with the CCG (joint buying power);
·
Redesign in-house provision to support the above objectives and
reduce expensive out of area placement costs. This includes
building on Covid-19 learning to optimise asset-based approaches to
service delivery including closer working with the voluntary
sector.
Families,
Children & Learning:
·
The Directorate is exploring options for savings on Adults with
Learning Disabilities through a number of targeted strategies
including:
o
Continuation of the 'Move On' project supporting adults with LD to
move on from high cost placements into new living arrangements
which promote independence.
o
Appropriate joint funding arrangements to be pursued i.e.
Continuing Health Care funding.
o
Improved transition arrangements for young people. The Specialist
Community Disability Service 14-25 pod will seek to provide a
greater focus on this high cost area.
o
Review of existing block contracts for outsourced services to
address any over provision and more effective utilisation of
voids.
o
Expansion of Shared Lives capacity.
·
The project to increase the number of in-house foster placements
and reduce reliance on more expensive independent provider
provision is ongoing which should enable further savings on
Children’s Agency Placement costs.
·
Ensuring value for money is obtained when using external providers;
this is supported by the children's services framework contract
arrangements and preferred provider guidelines.
·
Relationship based social work practice and the specialist
adolescence service continues to contribute to diverting children
from the care system by meeting need and managing risk within the
home.
·
Explore the potential to increase income from traveller sites.
Housing, Neighbourhoods & Communities
·
An ‘end to end’ review of Temporary Accommodation (TA)
services through a TA Improvement Programme. The programme
will include a review of income collection, voids turnaround, TA
procurement, management of lettings etc, as well as work to
increase the number of Council-owned TA units.
·
Explore potential options for the refinancing of the Seaside Homes
agreement to develop more cost effective ways of supporting
homeless people;
·
Explore savings opportunities in Communities, Equalities &
Third Sector services through small scale efficiency gains and
non-statutory support services.
Economy,
Environment & Culture
·
Increase on-street pay & display parking tariffs to generate
additional income thereby releasing core budget for savings;
·
Introduce emission-based on street parking tariffs, linked to the
objectives of a car free city centre and a reduction in congestion/
improvement in air quality.
·
Review of resident parking permit fees, including increasing fees
in areas of high demand zones to moderate the demand and encourage
alternative modes of transport.
·
Increase licence fees for skips, scaffolds, hoardings, materials
and A-Boards.
Finance
& Resources and Strategy, Governance & Law
·
Corporate Services and Support Functions will continue to explore
opportunities for generating external income by providing
contracted services. This must balance the income generated with
any impact on the capacity of these functions to provide the
council with the support it needs.
·
Services within the Orbis Partnership (Finance, HR, Procurement,
Audit and IT&D) will explore opportunities to deliver the
targeted savings within the 3-year Orbis Business Plan. These
savings may not fall evenly across services or across partners but
are expected to deliver £1.1m for the partnership, of which
BHCC’s share would be approximately £0.250m.
·
The Revenues & Benefits Service will explore further potential
savings in recognition of the ongoing transfer of caseload over to
Universal Credit managed by the DWP.
5.6
Some savings proposals are sufficiently developed to be able to
estimate the potential saving and are provided in more detail in
Appendix 2 in the interests of sharing information as soon as it is
available. However, these proposals are at an early draft stage and
are not yet accompanied by Equality Impact Assessments (EIAs)
(where an EIA is required). A fuller set of draft proposals will be
developed for the January Policy & Resources Committee and will
be shared confidentially with the cross-party Budget Review Groups
planned for mid-December and subsequently with the trades unions in
early January, including draft EIAs where applicable. These
proposals, including any further updates and changes, will be
submitted to the 21 January 2021 Policy & Resources Committee
(the agenda will be publicly available on 13 January).
5.7
It should be noted that consultation processes in relation to any
budget proposals will be in accordance with the timetable set out
in Section 7 but, for the avoidance of doubt, nothing can fetter
the necessary statutory or agreed consultation time required to
ensure that there is meaningful consultation with residents, staff
or other stakeholders potentially affected by budget
proposals.
Capital Investment Programme and Capital Strategy 2020/21
Capital
Investment Programme
5.8
The detailed capital investment programme will be brought to the
February Policy & Resources Committee as normal. The capital
programme will update existing capital schemes for any change in
phasing and/or cost estimates. The programme will cover existing
and new scheme proposals including:
·
Housing Schemes including HRA schemes and the Housing Joint
Venture;
·
Education & Skills investments including provision for school
places;
·
Sustainable Transport including Local Transport Plan
investments;
·
Major Regeneration schemes including the Strategic Investment Fund
(SIF), Brighton Waterfront, Madeira Terraces and New England
House;
·
Other Investment Funds including the Asset Management Fund, Planned
Maintenance and IT&D Fund;
·
Carbon reduction and sustainability investment programmes including
Solar Panels and the Sustainable Carbon Reduction Initiative Fund
(SCRIF);
·
Major IT & Digital implementation and replacement
programmes.
5.9
Other investment options and capital financing routes are currently
being explored and will come forward to February Policy &
Resources subject to the affordability of financing options, viable
outline business cases, or available capital resources including
capital receipts. Schemes currently being explored include:
·
Expanding the SCRIF programme as a priority investment to support
being a carbon neutral city;
·
Expanding the warmer homes scheme as a priority investment
(including district heating plans);
·
Considering alternative options for refurbishing the Madeira
Terraces remaining arches potentially through attracting additional
heritage funding;
·
Exploring capital investment options in future for Brighton Youth
Centre;
·
Expanding the Home Purchase scheme through, for example, the use of
Right-to-buy receipts currently applied to the General Fund;
·
Exploring a business case for a covered cycle rack scheme;
·
Retrofitting and renewable investment in council housing (HRA);
·
Exploring business cases for alternative Adult Social Care
provision (e.g. further extra care provision);
·
Exploring options for investment in street trees.
Modernisation Programme Funding
5.10
Over the previous 5 years, the council has focused on identifying
and supporting the delivery of savings through its Modernisation
Programme supported by significant capital investment. This is
enabled by generating capital receipts from the sale of surplus
assets to create an invest-to-save budget using the
government’s capital receipt flexibilities, which allowed
capital receipts to be applied to revenue saving projects and
programmes.
5.12
The Modernisation Fund is expected to be deployed as follows:
·
Invest-to-Save Budget Proposals: Based on the experience of
the previous 4 years, £2.000m is estimated to be required to
support implementation of specific savings and efficiency
programmes including service redesigns, recommissioning and process
improvements. Investment requirements are currently being reviewed
and finalised and will be refreshed each year. This resource will
be held in a reserve and only released through review of business
cases by the officer Corporate Modernisation Delivery Board.
Committee approvals would also be sought where required by
Financial Regulations and the council’s constitution.
·
Customer Digital: £4.350m is anticipated to be
required over the next 3 years to support ongoing investment in
digital infrastructure and applications and to support continued
development of the council’s digital services and integration
of data across systems and services to improve the accessibility,
efficiency and ease-of-use of on-line services. The investment is
set at a lower level than in the previous four years as the
underpinning work to develop the necessary technology platforms has
been completed.
·
Modernisation Enablers: £4.3m is estimated to be
required to support ongoing change and modernisation programmes
over the 4-year period. This includes everything from an effective
project management support team, business improvement analysts,
workstyles property team support, investment in ‘Our People
Promise’ and staff development and skills programmes,
together with additional specialist support where required. This
investment has been scaled down to reflect the lower level of
expected budget gaps over the next 4 years.
·
Managing staffing changes: efficiency programmes and a
continual drive for improved value for money will often result in
changes in the level or mix of staffing and skills required across
the council. Changing staffing levels or skills will often need
financial consideration in order to effect voluntary severance for
roles or posts no longer required or needing to be replaced with
different roles or skills. Estimated resources of £2.000m are
required to meet severance costs to manage change.
·
IT Modernisation Investment: Investment in IT equipment,
software, systems and services (e.g. voice and data) is important
to enable the organisation to remain secure, resilient and
efficient. Historically, the organisation has suffered from long
periods of under-investment which has had to be addressed over the
last 4 years through approval of large IT Capital Schemes including
Windows 10 roll-out, replacement of the Housing and Social Care
systems, General Data Protection Regulation upgrades, etc. Minimum
IT Modernisation Investment of £1.100m is included here in an
attempt to avoid a similar build-up of IT ‘investment
backlog’ by supplementing existing budgets and enabling the
council to keep up with necessary infrastructure changes.
5.13
The Modernisation Fund is kept under review as budget plans develop
and spend-to-save opportunities and investment requirements emerge
in more detail over the planning period. The indicative profile of
Modernisation Fund requirements is shown in the table below.
|
Table 7: Indicative Modernisation Fund
|
|
Programme Area
|
2020/21
|
2021/22
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
Total
|
|
£m
|
£m
|
£m
|
£m
|
£m
|
|
Customer
Digital
|
1.750
|
1.750
|
1.550
|
1.050
|
6.100
|
|
Modernisation
enablers
|
1.510
|
0.920
|
0.930
|
0.940
|
4.300
|
|
Invest to Save
(4-Year Plans)
|
0.650
|
0.550
|
0.450
|
0.350
|
2.000
|
|
Managing staffing
changes
|
0.700
|
0.500
|
0.400
|
0.400
|
2.000
|
|
IT Modernisation
Investment
|
0.800
|
0.300
|
0.000
|
0.000
|
1.100
|
|
Total
|
5.410
|
4.020
|
3.330
|
2.740
|
15.500
|
5.14
The Prudential Framework requires local authorities to produce a
Capital Strategy which is to be presented and approved by members
each year. The purpose of the Capital Strategy is to provide a
single place for transparency and accountability of local authority
non-financial investments and its capital investment programme,
including any commercial investments in commercial property or
loans to third parties.
5.15
The aim of the Capital Strategy is to ensure members are fully
conversant with the risks of non-financial investments and are
aware of how the risks are proportional to the council’s core
service activity. The document will include:
·
The proposed Capital Investment Programme
·
The Governance & Risk Framework
·
Potential and pending non-financial investments
·
An overview of the council’s Risk Exposure
5.16
The Modernisation Programme investments above will be incorporated
into the full Capital Strategy alongside new and perennial capital
investments that will support major regeneration projects, improved
transport infrastructure, provision for school places, and major
housing improvements and new build programmes. Key decisions are
likely to be required in respect of strategic funds including IT
& Digital investment, Strategic Investment Funds (supporting
regeneration) and Asset Management Funds. The Capital Strategy will
form part of the General Fund budget report to ensure that the link
between capital and revenue decisions is maintained and ensure that
budget resourcing decisions are taken in the context of the full
range of proposed revenue and capital budgets, resources,
investments and savings.
Capital Schemes Paused in 2020/21
Table
8: Capital Schemes Currently Paused
|
Scheme
Description
|
2020/21
Borrowing
£000*
|
Recommended
for December
Review
|
|
Sustainability & Carbon Reduction
Investment Fund
|
500
|
Un-pause
|
|
Sustainability & Carbon Reduction
Investment Fund - Transport BUDGET AMENDMENT
|
3,900
|
Un-pause
|
|
Purchase of Commercial Properties to support
Madeira Terraces Investment - BUDGET AMENDMENT
|
20,000
|
Continue pause and reassess the entire scheme
in the February Capital Strategy to P&R and Budget Council
|
|
Total
|
24,400
|
|
*
Associated financing costs will not now be incurred until 2021/22
at the earliest.
Staffing Implications (General Fund Services)
5.19
At this stage in the budget process it is not possible to determine
how many posts and staff may be affected by forthcoming proposals.
An estimate of posts and staff affected, including any staff
potentially at risk of redundancy, will be made for the January
Policy & Resources report and will be shared with trades unions
in early January. As in previous years, actual numbers will be
dependent on the detailed options proposed and on the results of
formal consultation where required. As previously experienced, it
is likely that a significant number of these posts are already
being held vacant and some will become vacant through normal
turnover, thereby minimising the risk of redundancies.
5.20
If the forthcoming proposals do potentially place any staff at risk
of redundancy the council will support them by:
·
Providing appropriate support to staff throughout the change
process to enable them to maximise any opportunities available;
·
Controlling recruitment and ensuring there is a clear business case
for any recruitment activity;
·
Managing redeployment at a corporate level and maximising the
opportunities for movement across the organisation;
·
Managing the use of temporary or agency resources via regular
reports to Directorate Management Teams (DMT’s);
·
Offering voluntary severance where appropriate to staff affected by
budget proposals on a case by case basis.
These measures will remain in
place as consultation with trade unions, staff and other
stakeholders is undertaken. Where necessary, a targeted voluntary
approach to releasing staff in areas undergoing change will be
managed to support service redesigns whilst ensuring that the
organisation retains the skills that will be needed for the
future.
6
ANALYSIS & CONSIDERATION OF ANY ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS
6.1
The budget process allows all parties to engage in the examination
of budget proposals and to put forward viable alternative budget
and council tax proposals to Budget Council on 25 February 2021.
Budget Council has the opportunity to debate the proposals put
forward by this Committee at the same time as any viable
alternative proposals.
6.2
Any alternative proposal will need prior assessment by the Section
151 Chief Finance Officer and will not normally be allowed where an
estimate is not considered to be robust for one of the following
reasons:
i)
The risk of not achieving the saving is assessed to be high;
ii)
There is insufficient evidence or information to assess the
potential saving;
iii)
The alternative proposal is adding to or bringing forward an
existing saving without further information as to how this can be
achieved;
iv)
The alternative proposal requires one-off investment or loan
financing that cannot be supported;
v) The
alternative proposal is beyond the powers and duties of the local
authority.
Budget Timetable
7.1
The Timetable for draft and final budget proposals is given in the
table below. This timetable does not include detailed plans for
ongoing consultation with stakeholders as this will be determined
in conjunction with those involved.
Table 9: Budget
Timetable
|
Date
|
Event
|
Notes
|
|
3 Dec 2020
|
Policy & Resources Committee (P&R)
|
Draft Budget & Resource Update report
including Budget Strategies;
Budget Monitoring (TBM) month 7 report.
|
|
10 - 18 Dec 2020
|
Service Budget Review Group Meetings (BRG)
|
Confidential BRG review of early draft
proposals – one meeting per directorate – attended by
relevant cross party portfolio leads and director
|
|
Mid-Dec
|
Provisional Local Government Financial
Settlement
|
Receipt and analysis of the provisional
settlement expected around mid-December.
|
|
Mid-Dec to early-Jan
|
Development of draft proposals
|
Further work and refinement of draft budget
proposals incorporating the impact of the Provisional Local
Government Financial Settlement
|
|
7 Jan 2021
|
CFO/Unions
|
Sharing overall draft budget proposals
|
|
7 – 12 Jan 21
|
Department Consultative Group’s
|
Sharing and explaining Budget Proposals for
the relevant directorate
|
|
w/c 11 Jan 21
|
BRG
|
January P&R finance reports (see below)
shared with cross-party Finance Leads
|
|
13 Jan 2021
|
P&R Publication
|
Publication of 21 Jan P&R papers and start
of consultation processes with other stakeholders.
|
|
21 Jan 2021
|
P&R
|
Budget Update and Draft Budget Proposals
report;
Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2021/22
report;
Council Tax Base report;
Business Rates tax base report.
|
|
28 Jan 2021
|
Council
|
Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2021/22 report
(from P&R).
|
|
1 Feb 2021
|
CFO/Unions
|
Sharing overall final budget package
|
|
11 Feb 2021
|
P&R
|
General Fund and HRA Revenue & Capital
Budget reports;
TBM month 9 report.
|
|
25 Feb 2021
|
Budget Council
|
General Fund and HRA Revenue & Capital
Budget reports.
|
7.2
General information and advice about the council’s budget
will continue to be provided through the council’s web site
which provides information and graphics on how money is spent on
services, where the money comes from and a summary of the financial
challenges ahead.
7.3
The council will also widely publicise its online social media
inviting residents and stakeholders to give us their views and
ideas on Twitter via #BHBudget. Social media continues to be a key,
low cost, mechanism for engaging with residents and other
stakeholders. Key proposals from the budget plan will be
publicised, along with information about council services, and
questions and comments invited from residents immediately following
their publication over the period leading to the February Policy
& Resources Committee meeting. A summary of response threads
will be provided to all political groups.
Other consultation
and engagement processes are as follows:
7.4
Information will be shared with Strategic Partners and community
groups as normal. Local Strategic Partners remain acutely aware of
the potential cumulative impact of funding pressures across public
sector agencies on the city. The City Management Board, attended by
all Local Strategic Partnership representatives, will therefore
ensure that information is shared across the sector to assess and
mitigate adverse cumulative impacts wherever possible and develop
joint actions where appropriate. Engagement with statutory partners
will continue on an ongoing basis to further share and understand
the potential cumulative impact of budget proposals across the city
as they take shape.
7.5
In particular, the council will be engaging fully with the Brighton
& Hove Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) with the intention of
aligning the budget processes of the two organisations as far as
practicably possible. As with the council, the local CCG is likely
to remain under severe financial pressure due to continually
increasing demands.
7.6
There are ongoing briefings and discussions with the Economic
Partnership that cover potential funding sources and bids, city
regeneration, economic growth, employment and apprenticeship
strategies. Statutory consultation with Business Ratepayers will
also be undertaken as normal.
7.7
For staff, updates will be provided via the council’s
intranet and formal consultation with Staff and Unions will be
undertaken as normal including Departmental Consultative Group
(DCG) meetings during December and January followed by appropriate
consultation with directly affected staff. It is recognised that
the budget process is delayed by approximately one month due to the
pandemic and this will need to be accommodated in consultation time
lines to ensure appropriate and meaningful consultation with staff
and unions.
7.8
Similarly, where appropriate or required by statute, specific
consultation will be undertaken with residents and other people
directly affected by proposed changes to service delivery.
7.9
Many different stakeholders are interested in proposals for fees
and charges which are often linked with budget proposals. Please
refer to the relevant service committee where proposals are
normally considered and approved. The list of meetings is set out
in the table below.
|
Table 10: Approval
of Fees & Charges
|
|
Fees & Charges
Area
|
Meeting
|
Date
|
|
Licensing and Enforcement
|
Licensing Committee
|
26/11/20
|
|
Children & Young People
|
Children, Young People & Skills
Committee
|
11/01/21
|
|
Private Sector Housing – HMO
Licensing
|
Housing Committee
|
20/01/21
|
|
Housing Revenue Account
|
Housing Committee
|
20/01/21
|
|
Planning
|
Tourism, Equalities, Communities & Culture
Committee
|
14/01/21
|
|
Libraries
|
Tourism, Equalities, Communities & Culture
Committee
|
14/01/21
|
|
Seafront, Outdoor Events and Venues
|
Tourism, Equalities, Communities & Culture
Committee
|
14/01/21
|
|
Environmental Health and Trading Standards
|
Environment, Transport & Sustainability
Committee
|
19/01/21
|
|
City Parks and City Clean
|
Environment, Transport & Sustainability
Committee
|
19/01/21
|
|
Parking and Highways
|
Environment, Transport & Sustainability
Committee
|
19/01/21
|
|
Bereavement Services
|
Environment, Transport & Sustainability
Committee
|
19/01/21
|
|
Life Events (excluding Bereavement
Services)
|
Policy & Resources Committee
|
21/01/21
|
|
Adult Social Care Non-residential care
services
|
Health & Wellbeing Board
|
26/01/21
|
8
CONCLUSION
6
7
8
9
8.1
The council is under a statutory duty to set its budget and council
tax before 11 March each year. Notwithstanding the delays caused by
the pandemic, this report sets out the latest budget assumptions,
process and timetable to meet the statutory duty.
9
FINANCIAL & OTHER IMPLICATIONS:
Financial
Implications:
5
6
7
8
9
10
9.1
These are contained within the main body of the report.
Finance Officer Consulted: James
Hengeveld
Date: 26/11/20
Legal Implications:
9.2
Policy & Resources Committee has delegated power to formulate
the council’s revenue budget proposals and Capital Strategy
and to recommend their adoption by full Council as part of the
overall budget setting process.
9.3
Any decisions taken as part of the budget setting process are
subject to compliance with relevant legal requirements where
appropriate before implementation. The early draft budget plans and
savings proposals contained in this report are for noting and are
subject to change, and do not commit the council to implement any
specific savings proposals. When specific decisions on budget
reductions are necessary, focussed consultations and the full
equality implications of doing one thing rather than another will
need to be considered in appropriate
detail.
Lawyer Consulted: Elizabeth
Culbert
Date: 26/11/20
Equalities Implications:
9.4
In Brighton & Hove City Council a budget Equality Impact
Assessment (EIA) process has been used to identify the potential
disproportionate impacts of proposals on groups/individuals covered
by legislation (the ‘protected characteristics’ in the
Equality Act 2010) and actions to mitigate these negative impacts
or promote positive impacts. This is a key part of meeting the
requirements of the Act and demonstrating that we are doing
so.
9.5
In law, the potential impacts identified, and how far proposed
actions mitigate them, must be given due regard by decision-makers
when making budget and resource decisions. However, as noted under
legal implications above, in setting the budget members are making
resourcing decisions which remain subject to compliance with all
necessary legal and statutory consultation requirements.
9.6
All proposals with a potential equalities impact in 2021/22 will
have an EIA completed and provided to all Members no later than the
January Policy & Resources Committee. As normal, these will be
cross-referenced with savings proposals. Staffing EIAs will also be
completed alongside the formal consultation process on proposed
staffing changes and feedback will be provided in the February
report.
9.7
Feedback will be used by officers to revise the first drafts of
EIAs into final versions which will be available to members and
scrutiny as they consider the budget proposals at Budget Policy
& Resources and Budget Council. They will also be published on
the council website.
Sustainability Implications:
9.8
One of the key principles for developing budget proposals, aligned
with the Corporate Plan, is whether or not proposals and
investments can contribute to the 10 year carbon reduction target
to become carbon neutral by 2030. This plays out through everything
from reviewing the council’s Administrative Buildings
occupancy and facilitating more remote working for staff, to
increasing the number of electric vehicles in its fleet, through to
working with the Climate Assembly to identify further opportunities
and actions. The capital and revenue budget proposals for 2021/22
cannot address all of the Corporate Plan objectives immediately but
do provide for many initiatives to be supported and researched to
inform future budget rounds.
Any Other
Significant Implications:
Risk and
Opportunity Management Implications:
9.10
The level of financial risk provisions will need to be reviewed for
2021/22 in the light of the Month 9 budget monitoring position
(TBM), the outcome of the Local Government Financial Settlement,
the delivery risks inherent in savings proposals, the projected
ongoing impact of the pandemic, and available resources. The level
of any risk provisions will clearly need to strike a balance
between putting scarce resources to one side when there are growing
pressures on service delivery.
9.11
The budget report to February Policy, Resources & Growth
Committee will include the Chief Finance Officer’s formal
assessment of the robustness of estimates in the budget and the
adequacy of reserves and provisions, including an assessment of the
need for any additional risk provisions.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Appendices:
1.
Draft Directorate Budget Strategies 2021/22
2.
Early Draft Budget Proposals
Documents in Members’ Rooms
1. None
Background Documents
1.
Budget files held within Finance