Content

The motion was MOVED by Councillor De Ryk and SECONDED by
Councillor Rathbone.
 
Under the provisions of the Local Authorities (Standing
Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, a recorded vote was
conducted on this item with the following result:
For (46) Councillors Anwar, Atkinson, Barnham, Bell,
Bernards, Best, Bourne, Burgess, Brown, Clarke, Cunningham, Curran,
Dall, Davis, De Ryk, Eiles, Erheriene, Harding,
Howard, Huynh, Ingleby, Jackson, Johnston-Franklin, Kestner,
Lahai-Taylor, Lavery, Millbank, Moore, Muldoon, Parry, Jacq
Paschoud, John Paschoud, Penfold, Royston, Rathbone, Schmidt, Aliya
Sheikh, Sakina Sheikh, Shrivastava, Sorba,
Stamirowski, Walsh, Warner, Webley-Brown, Walker and
Wise. 
Against (0) Nil
Abstention (1) Tam
 
RESOLVED that, having considered the views of those
consulted on the budget, and subject to proper process as required,
Council agreed to:
 
General Fund Revenue
Budget

1.            
note the 2024/25 forecast projected overall variance of
£26.0m, after the use of corporate provisions and reserves,
or 8.8% of the agreed budget of £293.838m as set out in
Section 6 of the report, and that this year-end overspend will be
met from corporate provisions and reserves;

2.            
endorse the budget cut reduction measures of £0.850m
(previously agreed) and £3.848m (agreed in 2024/25), for
2025/26 as set out in Section 6 of the report and summarised in
Appendix Y1 and Y2 respectively;

3.            
agree the allocation of £65.023m of resources from; the
corporate risks and pressures, Adult Social Care precept, social
care grant, Adult Social Care market sustainability and improvement
fund, New Homes Bonus, Recovery Grant, Children’s Social Care
Prevention Grant, government funding for increased employers
National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and reserves in 2025/26 to
be invested in funding quantified budget pressures and
opportunities, both recurring and once-off, as set out in Section
6;
4. agree a General Fund Budget Requirement of
£312.515m for 2025/26 be approved;
5. agree to a 4.99% increase in Lewisham’s Council
Tax element. This will result in a Band D equivalent Council Tax
level of £1,644.75 for Lewisham’s services and
£2,135.13 overall. This represents an overall increase in
Council Tax for 2025/26 of 4.77% and is subject to the Greater
London Authority (GLA) precept for 2025/26 being increased by
£18.98 (i.e. 4.03%) from £471.40 to £490.38, in
line with the GLA’s draft budget proposals;
6. note the Council Tax Ready Reckoner which, for
illustrative purposes, sets out the Band D equivalent Council Tax
at various levels of increase. This is explained in Section 6 of
the report with more detail in Appendix Y4;
7. ask that the Executive Director for Corporate Resources
issues cash limits to all Directorates once the 2025/26 Revenue
Budget is agreed and publishes the Council Budget Book;
8. consider the Section 25 Statement from the Chief
Finance Officer, the Executive Director for Corporate Resources.
This is attached at Appendix Y5;
9. agree the draft statutory calculations for 2025/26 as
set out at Appendix Y6;
10. note the prospects for the revenue budget for 2025/26
and future years, including the planned use of £21.895m of
reserves to enable the setting of a balanced budget, with the need
for at least £30.000m of budget reductions to be implemented
in 2026/27 to remove this reliance as set out in Sections 6 and
7;
11. agree and ask officers to continue to develop firm
proposals to redesign and transform services and inform the capital
strategy by bringing them forward in good time to support the work
towards a savings and investment round to help plan early to meet
the future forecast medium term finance strategy
objectives;
12. agree to write-off 16 cases of Former Tenants’
Arrears related to Temporary Accommodation stock totalling
£326,710.42, as set out in Appendix Y10;
13. agree to write-off one case of Business Rates Arrears
totalling £142,383.75, as set out in Appendix Y10;
14. agree to write off one case of Adult Social Care
Sundry Debt Arrears totalling £59,486.63, as set out in
Appendix Y10;
Other Grants (within the General
Fund)
15. note the adjustments to and impact of various specific
grants for 2025/26 on the General Fund as set out in Section 6 of
the report;
16. agree the award of the anticipated UK Shared
Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) grant, anticipated to be in the region of
£1m, and the Connect to Work Employment Programme Grant of
£8.5m, and delegate agreeing the grant conditions to the
Executive Director for Corporate Resources;
Fees and Charges
17. approve the approach to setting 2025/26 fees and
charges for chargeable services in Section 6 of the report and
attached at Appendix Y8;
Dedicated Schools Grant and
Pupil Premium
18. note the provisional gross Dedicated Schools Grant
(DSG) allocation for 2025/26 of £395.95m before the
Department for Education’s (DfE’s) adjustments to fund
Academy schools;
19. note the provisional DSG allocation for £257.08m
be the Schools’ Budget (Schools Block) for 2025/26 covering
both maintained schools and academies, and that this includes
streamlining of grants for teachers pay (2023/24 award), Core
Schools Budget Grant and the Teachers’ Pensions Grant
totalling £13.5m;
20. agree, as recommended by Schools Forum, the once-off
transfer of circa £1m of Schools Block funding to the High
Needs Block, a 0.5% transfer;
21. note the construct and allocation of £2.96m for
the Central Schools Services Block allocation for 2025/26, a
continued reduction of £0.260m (20%), plus formula led
element increase of £0.19m, which is rolled in funding and
not new funding;
22. note the provisional High Needs Block of £83.96m
to support the Council’s statutory duty with regards to
Special Education Needs (SEN), a net increase of £5m relative
to 2024/25 (6%). Also to note that the High Needs Block will be
finalised in March for deductions arising for institutions funded
by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA);
23. note, the DSG allocation to the Early Years Block of
£51.96m;
24. note that the DfE has increased hourly funding for 3-
and 4-year-olds from £7.24 to £7.52 (3.9%) and with
respect to 2-year-old disadvantaged funding from £10.64 to
£11.04 (3.8%);
25. note the increased hourly funding for under
2-year-olds from £14.52 (introduced and part funded in
September 2024) to £15.06 (3.7%);
26. note the increased hourly rate for 2-year-old working
parent entitlement from £10.64 to £11.04 per hour
(3.8%);
27. note that the pupil premium will continue in 2025/26
(no details have been provided on the value of this as yet, this is
expected to be confirmed in late summer 2025);
28. note that the DfE has advised a new grant will be
provided to support Schools for the changes to the Employers NICs,
however no details have been provided as yet;
Housing Revenue
Account
29. note the consultation report on proposed service
charge increases to tenants and leaseholders in the Brockley area,
presented to tenants and leaseholders on 30 October 2024, as
attached at Appendix X2;
30. note the consultation report on proposed service
charge increases to tenants presented to the remaining tenants on
29 October 2024 as attached at Appendix X3. Leaseholders were asked
for their views at the Leasehold Forum on 16 January
2025.
31. agree to set an increase in dwelling rents of 2.7% (an
average of £3.26 per week) – as per Government’s
formula rent increases to be applied to rents for 2025/26 and as
outlined in Section 9 of the report;
32. agree to set an increase in the hostels accommodation
charge by 2.7% (or £1.07 per week), in accordance with
Government’s direction for formula rent increases to be
applied to rents for 2025/26;
33. approve the following average weekly
increases/decreases for dwellings for:
33.1 service charges to Private Finance Initiative (PFI)
managed dwellings (Brockley) to ensure full cost recovery and 3.7%
inflationary uplift for 2025/26:
·               
caretaking 3.7% (£0.18)
·               
grounds 3.7% (£0.12)
·               
communal lighting 3.7% (£0.08)
·               
bulk waste collection 3.7% (£0.05)
·               
window cleaning 3.7% (£0.00)
·               
tenants’ levy 0.00% (£0.00)
33.2
service charges to Council managed dwellings to ensure full cost
recovery and 2.7% inflationary uplift for 2025/26:
·               
caretaking -8.99% -(£0.70)
·               
grounds 9.40% (£0.25)
·               
window cleaning 2.70% (£0.00)
·               
communal lighting 100% (£6.00)
·               
block pest control 2.7% (£1.28)
·               
waste collection 2.70% (£0.08)
·               
heating & hot water 7.70% (£1.23)
·               
tenants’ levy 0.00% (£0.00)
·               
bulk waste disposal 17.00% (£0.18)
·               
sheltered housing 2.50% (£0.46)
34.
approve the following average weekly percentage changes for hostels
and shared temporary units for:
·    
service charges (hostels) – caretaking etc.; 2.70% or
£1.67pw energy cost increases for heat, light & power;
10.0% or £0.80pw;
·    
water charges increase; 2.70% or £0.02pw;
35. approve an increase in garage rents by 2.70%
(£0.55 per week) for Brockley PFI and Council residents as
outlined in Appendix X4;
36. note that the budgeted expenditure for the Housing
Revenue Account (HRA) for 2025/26 is £251.2m, split
£113.5m revenue and £137.7m capital, which includes the
decent homes and new build programmes;
37. agree the HRA Business Plan for 2025/26, as attached
at Appendix X7;
38. note the 2024/25 P8 HRA Capital Programme monitoring
position and the Capital Programme potential future schemes and
resources as set out in Section 11 of the report;
39. agree to write-off five cases of Former Tenants’
Arrears totalling £66,752.22, as set out in Appendix
X5;
40. agree to write of 16 cases of Aerial Debt arrears
totalling £973,323.36, as set out in Appendix X5;
Treasury Management
Strategy
41. approve the Treasury Management Strategy 2025/26
including the prudential indicators and treasury indicators, as set
out in Section 10 of the report;
42. approve the Annual Investment Strategy and
Creditworthiness Policy, set out in further detail at Appendix Z2,
and that it formally delegates responsibility for managing
transactions with those institutions which meet the criteria to the
Executive Director of Corporate Resources;
43. approve the Investment Strategy as set out in Section
10 of this report, along with the operational boundary &
authorised limit for the year as set out in tables D4 and
D5;
44. approve the Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) policy as
set out in Section 10 of the report;
45. approve the overall credit and counterparty risk
management criteria, as set out at Appendix Z2, the proposed
countries for investment at Appendix Z5, and that it formally
delegates responsibility for managing transactions with those
institutions meeting the criteria to the Executive Director for
Corporate Resources;
46. agree to delegate to the Executive Director of
Corporate Resources the authority during 2025/26 to make amendments
to borrowing and investment limits provided they are consistent
with the strategy and there is no change to the Council’s
authorised limit for borrowing.
Capital Programme
47. note the 2024/25 capital programme position and agrees
the reprofiled 2024/25 Capital Programme of £177.2m as set
out in Section 11 of the report;
48. approve the 2025/26 to 2028/29 Capital Programme of
£421.4m as set out in Section 11 of the report;
49. agree the Capital Strategy set out in Appendix
W1;
50. agree to delegate to the Executive Director for
Corporate Resources authority to amend the scheme mix within the
Capital programme to respond to the risks as set out as long as
this is done within the total programme parameters approved and
that regular updates on the capital programme, reflecting any
changes, are regularly reported back to Mayor &
Cabinet;
Climate Budget 2025/26 –
2027/28
51. agree the Council’s Climate Budget 2025/26
– 2027/28 as set out in Section 12 and Appendix
V1.