Agenda item

The Council is required to set a balanced budget and agree the level of Council Tax for 2024/25 and this report contains a summary of the proposals that have been considered for inclusion.

Purpose of report

The Council was required to set a balanced budget and agree the level of Council Tax for 2024/25 and this report contained a summary of the proposals that had been considered for inclusion. The proposals were considered and scrutinised in detail by the Budget Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 15 January 2024. The proposals had been consulted upon by residents and businesses during the period 19 January – 2 February 2024.

Decision

Recommendations to Council:

1.    To set a General Fund budget requirement of £18.521m for 2024/25 detailed at section 2 of this report and shown in detail at Appendix A (inclusive of special expenses).

2.    To propose a Council Tax level of £183.89 for 2024/25 (Band D property) after taking into consideration the consultation findings.

3.    To note the indicative base estimates for 2025/26 and 2026/27 as detailed at Appendix A.

4.    To approve Housing Revenue Account (HRA) dwelling rent increases of 7.7% for 2024/25 in accordance with Government rent setting guidelines providing an average rent of £96.99 per week.

5.    To approve an increase in HRA garage rents of 6.7%.

6.    To approve an increase in shared ownership rents by 7.7%.

7.    To approve the HRA Revenue Summary for the year 2024/25 and to note theindicative budgets for 2025/26 and 2026/27 shown at Appendix A.

8.    Approve the General Fund Capital programme for 2023/24 to 2025/26 detailedat section 5 of this report and shown at Appendix B.

9.    Approve the General Fund Capital Financing statement detailed at AppendixB.

10. Approve General Fund Capital Programme budget carry forward of £14.381m from 2022/23 shown at Appendix B.

11. Approve the Housing Capital Investment programme for 2024/25 to 2026/27detailed at section 5 of this report and as shown at Appendix B.

12. Approve the HRA Capital Financing statement detailed at Appendix B.

13. Approve the Housing Revenue Account Capital Investment Programmebudget carry forward of £0.177m from 2023/24 shown at Appendix B.

14. To approve the movements in General Fund Revenue and Capital Reserves and balances detailed at section 7 of this report and shown at Appendix C.

15. To approve the movements in HRA revenue and Capital Reserves and balances detailed at section 7 of this report and shown at Appendix C.

16. To approve the Treasury Management Strategy Statement detailed at section 10 of this report and shown at Appendix F.

17. To approve the Capital Strategy detailed at section 10 of this report and shown at Appendix G.

18. To approve additional one-off funding of £153,000 be added to the Local Priorities Reserve.

Alternative options considered and rejected

The Council was legally required to set a balanced budget each financialyear, therefore there was no option not to set a budget.

Reasons for decision

The Council was legally required to set a balanced budget each financial year.

There had been a successful public consultation on the Budget proposals, with a higher response seen from previous years. 48% of people responding to the survey supported an increase in Council Tax by the maximum amount, higher than the corresponding number of ‘nos’ in this category.

A final settlement announced on 5 February 2024 included £153,000 of one-off funding, and it was recommended to add this funding to the Local Priorities Reserve.

Further points were highlighted during debate:

·         A balanced position had been achieved for the Budget without any additional pressures on reserves.

·         There had been a projected increase to the Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP).

·         Borrowing would be undertaken to fund the capital programme.

·         This was the first budget following the removal of the Housing Regulatory Notice. Dwelling rent increases of 7.7% were recommended for 2024/2025, in accordance with Government rent setting guidelines.

·         The Council would continue to invest in and maintain its assets. Examples of this were the replacement of vehicles on the Streetscene and Waste Services, as well as the investment in the new Depot.

·         Capital funding within the Housing Revenue Account was fixed on energy efficiency initiatives.

·         Projects were coming forward to utilise the Climate Change reserve, with the aim of reducing the Council’s carbon footprint.