Decision

RESOLVED That Cabinet:-

 CORPORATE FINANCE PERFORMANCE

1. Note the £1.5M projected overspend on the Council’s 26/27 General Fund budget.
2. Note that any further deterioration in the Council's financial position during 2026/27 will require the deployment of strategic reserves currently earmarked for other corporate priorities in order to achieve a balanced budget. Such a position would reduce the Council's financial resilience and is likely to necessitate the identification and delivery of additional recurring savings over and above the £30 million required to deliver a sustainable Medium Term Financial Strategy.
3. Task the Senior Management Team to take immediate action to contain expenditure, accelerate the delivery of savings and identify further mitigation measures sufficient to address the reported cost pressures, with formal progress reports brought forward at each monitoring cycle.
4. Note the significant financial risk attached to the forecast Dedicated School’s Grant deficit of £13.4M in 26/27 rising to £28M by the end of 27/28 given Government are yet to announce any financial support for this (unlike for deficits to end of 25/26).
5. Note the Housing Revenue Account is a forecast balanced position.
6. Approve the accounting write-off of historic bad debts totalling £0.4M as detailed in the report [NB: all debts remain liable for collection].

CAPITAL PROGRAMME PERFORMANCE

1. Note the updated Capital Programme from 26/27 to 30/31.
2. Approve scheme slippage of £21.2M from 26/27 to future years.

TREASURY MANAGEMENT

1. Approve the updated Prudential and Treasury Management indicators.
2. Note the key messages from the Council’s Treasury Management activities (paragraph 4).