Purpose

This report provides the 2026/27 budget monitor for General Fund revenue and capital forecasts against budget, as well as the Housing Revenue Account to the 30 June 2026. This report also details work underway to address structural pressures.

Decision

Cabinet agreed the following, to:

1. Approve a one-off General Fund revenue virement amounting to £269,035 for the 2026/27 financial year, as set out in Annex 4 (to the Cabinet report). This comprises £188,000 assigned specifically to support cleansing services in 2026/27, with the remaining £81,000 retained within contingency;
2. Agree to the following capital programme budget changes:

(i)  Scheme reprofiling as set out in section 9.3 and Annex 1 to the report.

(ii) Budget adjustments as set out in section 9.5 and Annex 1 to the report.

1. To agree a virement of £190k within the 2026/27 HRA revenue budget to provide additional funding for completing the programme of the stock condition surveys, to be funded from the forecast underspend from the Waking Watch.

Reasons for the decision

The report provides Cabinet with a view on the 2026/27 forecast outturn for General Fund revenue and capital, as well as the Housing Revenue Account. The decisions are required to approve necessary budget adjustments for revenue as well as to the Capital Programme and to recommend approvals to Council where appropriate to ensure finances continue to be sound and the Council meets its duty to monitor spending.

Alternative options considered

Cabinet considered not approving the budget variations or adjustments. This was rejected because insufficient budget would be available for the proposed usage detailed in the report. Consequently, those schemes and initiatives would either need to be aborted or officers would need to return to Cabinet with alternative recommendations at a later date.