Purpose

To provide a finance update for Q3 to council

Content

 The Cabinet considered a report of the
Director of Corporate Services and Chief Finance Officer, which
sought to inform of Council’s forecast 2025/26 Financial
Position at the end of December 2025.
 
The Cabinet Member
Finance and Growth delivered a brief summary of the report’s
key points.
 
The Interim Deputy
Chief Finance Officer was in attendance to present the report and
to address the questions and comments of the Cabinet Members and of
the Leader of the Conservative Group.
 
The Senior Officer
informed that the 2025/26 forecast Revenue outturn position was a
pressure of £4,110k, arising from pressures in
Children’s Services, Integrated Care & Health, Economy
& Place, and Corporate Services directorates.
 
The pressures were
being partially mitigated by in year savings relating to forecast
increased Treasury income, and in year savings in Public Health
directorate. The forecast pressure was prior to the consideration
of non-automatic Budget Carry Forward requests. If the Council had
an overall overspend position at the end of the financial year, the
Budget Carry forward requests would not be approved. Any variation
from budget at outturn would be transferred to or from the
Equalisation reserve.
 

 • Non-automatic Budget Carry Forward
requests of £825k had been received, and if these were
approved, the 2025/26 revenue pressure would increase to
£4,935k.

 • The 2025/26 forecast Capital
Outturn position was £99,818k, after rephasing of
£14,288k into future years.
• The
forecast 2025/26 Collection Fund position, being a surplus of
£3,717k, including the Council’s share of
£3,378k. The Council’s share of the surplus had been
reflected in the Council’s 2026/27 budget.

 • Quarter 3 updates on:
o the Property
Growth Fund position as detailed in section 5.8 of the report;
and

 o the Treasury Management position,
discussed in section 5.9 of the report, and Appendix C to the
report.
 
Resolved:

1.    
That the 2025/26 forecast positions for Revenue, Capital, and
the Collection Fund as at the end of December 2025, as detailed in
section 5 of the report be noted;

2.    
That the significant overspend of £7.358m in Children
Services be noted; a separate report is to be presented to March
2026 Cabinet.

3.    
That the non- automatic Budget Carry Forward requests
summarised in section 5.3.1 of the report be noted;

4.    
That the Budget Pressure balance shown in section 5.3.2 of
the report be noted;

5.    
That the update on the Health and Social Care Pooled Budget
detailed in section 5.4 of the report be noted;

6.    
That the net Capital budget changes of £637k, detailed
in section 5.6.1 of the report be noted;

7.    
That the Capital re-phasing of £14,288k into future
years detailed in section 5.6.2 of the report, and Appendix B (2)
to the report be noted;

8.    
That the request to switch capital budgets within Economy
& Place directorates as detailed in section 5.6.3 of the report
be agreed;

9.    
That the Property Growth Fund update in section 5.8 of the
report be noted;
10. That the
Treasury Management update for Quarter 2 in section 5.9 of the
report, and Appendix C to the report be noted;
 
Reason for
decision:
Cabinet Members
should be updated on the financial position of the authority, as
effective budget management was critical to ensuring financial
resources were spent in line with the budget and were targeted
towards the Council’s priorities.
This report
focused on the forecast 2025/26 financial position as at the end
December 2025.
 
Alternatives
considered and rejected:
There were no
alternative, as the Council financial reporting complied with
CIPFA’s Financial Management Code and its standards to ensure
management of financial resources in the short, medium and long
term, management of financial resilience to meet unforeseen demands
on services, and management of unexpected shocks within financial
circumstances.