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RECOMMENDED:
 
Cabinet Recommends to
Council:
 
Recommendation 1 It is
recommended that Council note the revision to the Forecast for
2025/2026 as set out in Section 2 of the report.
 
Recommendation 2 It is
recommend that Council delegate authority to the Chief Executive,
in consultation with the Leader, to approve the contract for the
appointment of a strategic partner to implement Local Government
Reorganisation (Paragraph 4.1.2).
 
Recommendation 3 It is
recommended that Council approves the amendments to the Fees and
Charges Policy explained in paragraph 4.3.2 and proposed in
Appendix 4b.
 
Recommendation 4 Council is
recommended to approve the Policy on Earmarked Reserves and General
Fund Balance and the maximum balances set for the reserves as noted
in the report and at Appendix 8.
 
Recommendation 5 It is
recommended that Council :
 
1) Approves the budget
requirement of £24,475,309 for 2026/2027 and notes the
projections for 2027/2028, 2028/2029 and 2029/2030.
 
2) Approves the Fees and
Charges 2026/2027 detailed in Appendix 4a.
 
3) Approves the Pay Policy at
Appendix 5
 
4) Approves the level of
Special Expenses for the Town/Parish Councils as detailed in the
report (Appendix 7).
 
5) Approves a Band D council
tax of £157.44 for 2026/2027.
 
Recommendation 6 It is
recommended that Council approves a minimum requirement of the
General Fund balance for 2026/2027 of £1,245,250 (5% of
estimated budget requirement).
 
Recommendation 7 Pursuant to
Section 25 of the Local Government Act, Council is asked to have
due regard to this statement at Section 9 of this report when
considering and approving the budget and the level of council tax
for 2026/2027.