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Salford City Council - Record of Decision (Cabinet)
I Paul
Dennett, City Mayor, in
exercise of the powers contained within the City Council
Constitution do hereby
approve the proposed Housing Revenue
Account 2026/27 as set out in this report and refer it for approval
by Full Council on 25th February 2026. In doing so I:

1.   
Approve the Housing Revenue Account budget for
2026/27 as set out in this report with a 4% increase to rents for
2026/27.
Options considered and rejected were:None
Assessment of Risk:
The
Council’s budget and financial position is a
key corporate risk that has been highlighted as being
high priority for monitoring and reporting on the Corporate Risk
Register. The proposals in this report have sought to ensure
adequate budget provision for 2026/27 with a clear reporting
of risks with the budget strategy. 

Legal Advice obtained:
The
Local Government Finance Act 1992 sets out what the Council has to
base its budget calculations on and requires the Council to set a
balanced budget for the following year by 11 March. Section 25 of
the Local Government Act 2003 requires the Council to have regard
to the advice of the Chief Finance Officer (S151 officer) as to the
robustness of the estimates made for the purposes of the
calculations and the adequacy of the proposed financial
reserves.
Although the calculation of the council tax requirement and the
formulation of plans and strategies for control of the
Council’s borrowing, investments, capital expenditure and for
determining the Council’s minimum reserve position are
executive functions, the approval of such plans and strategies is a
function reserved to full Council.
The
process to be followed to set the budget is therefore that the City
Mayor and Cabinet recommend a draft budget to Council for approval.
If the majority of Council does not approve the budget it will be
referred back to the City Mayor. The City Mayor will consider the
comments of Council and then present a further draft budget to
Council, which can only be rejected by a two thirds majority of
Council.
The
financial position must be closely monitored and members must
satisfy themselves that sufficient mechanisms are in place to
ensure the delivery of savings as well as to ensure that any new
expenditure is contained within the available resources.
In
approving the budget, members must also have regard to the Public
Sector Equality Duty in making their decision. Further information
in respect of this duty is set out earlier in this
report.
As
Monitoring Officer I have been consulted in the preparation of this
report and am satisfied that the proposals set out in this report
comply with the constitutional and legal requirements for the
budget setting process.

Financial Advice obtained:
This
report has been prepared by the council’s finance team in
consultation with strategic directors and heads of service, and
contains full financial implications around the budget, council tax
and housing rent setting.
Procurement Advice
obtained:
The
procurement team will continue to work collaboratively with
stakeholders, service areas, suppliers and partner organisations to
deliver value for money, service/budget efficiencies and improved
outcomes, ensuring that contract costs are aligned to
budgets.
HR Advice obtained: Not applicable
Climate Change Advice obtained:
Salford is committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2038 and
“Responding to climate change” is a theme within the
corporate plan. Salford is already experiencing the impacts of
climate change, including flooding and heat stress linked to
extreme weather events. These events are forecast to become more
frequent and intense due to ongoing climate change, with impacts
likely to vary across the city based on geography and
socio-economic factors. While Salford has made significant progress
in reducing overall carbon emissions, it is important to note that
a proportion of this reduction is attributable to national grid
decarbonisation, driven by the reduction in coal usage and the
increased share of renewable energy in the electricity
mix.
Within
Salford, the majority of emissions originate from transport and
domestic sources (23%), This means that when utilising the HRA
priority should be given to responding to climate change both
through mitigation measures – including energy efficiency and
renewable energy measures and though adaptation measures to protect
residents from climate related extreme weather including flood and
extreme urban heat.
Examples of climate ready housing include homes built by
Dérive to Passivhaus standard or
equivalent, offering high quality energy efficient homes with lower
energy bills for residents.
It
should also be noted that Part of 1 of the Salford Local Plan
(Salford Local Plan: Development Management Policies and
Designations) was adopted in January 2023. An important strategic
objective of the Local Plan is to minimise contributions to, and
risks from climate change; key targets being:
All
new development to be net zero carbon by 2028, working towards
carbon neutrality by 2038; and significantly increasing the
capacity of renewable and low carbon energy production
by.
The following documents have been used
to assist the decision process:
Proposed Revenue Budget 2026/27
Contact Officer:  Rachel Rosewell         , Chief
Finance Officer       
           
Telephone number: 07855066602        
 
The
appropriate scrutiny to call-in the decision is the Overview and
Scrutiny Board

 

Signed:Paul Dennett         
Dated: 17th February 2026
           
City Mayor
 

For Democratic
Services use only

 

This decision was
published on 18.02.26.                                           

This decision will
come in force at 4.00 p.m. on 25.02.26
unless it is called-in in
accordance with the Decision Making Process Rules.