The Audit and Performance Committee of Westminster City Council met on Thursday 3 September 2026 to review the council's financial performance, capital receipts, procurement activities, and contract and supplier performance. Key discussions included a projected £6.8 million General Fund revenue overspend, significant capital programme variances, and the ongoing management of major contracts.

Q1 Performance Report

The committee reviewed the council's performance at the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year. While overall performance was broadly as expected, specific areas prompted further questions. Concerns were raised about the council's capacity to seize dockless bikes, with information requested on the process and capacity. The £1.3 million Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) reform grant was confirmed as additional funding. The committee welcomed the expanded corporate risk section and sought clarification on mitigations for children's social care cost pressures, with assurances given about in-house provision helping to mitigate some of the highest-cost placements. Business continuity plans were discussed in the context of potential unavailability of City Hall, with assurances provided on flexible working and alternative locations. The committee noted a slight fall in service users receiving direct payments against an increased target, and received information on support for care leavers in education, employment, or training (EET), including individual plans and business partnerships. The definition of major cultural events was requested, and the committee was informed about the process for accessing CCTV footage for police investigations. The potential inclusion of e-bike enforcement targets in future KPI reporting was discussed, with assurances that new priorities are being considered. The committee queried the lack of a specific target for long-term entrenched rough sleepers, and was informed about the complexity of rough sleeping in Westminster and the council's outreach and prevention work. The number of successful homelessness preventions was discussed, with officers expecting performance to improve with new initiatives. The committee noted an improvement in call answering times for the Customer Contact Centre and queried the downward trend in Council Tax collection, which was attributed to the second homes premium.

Actions:

• The committee will receive more information regarding the council's capacity to seize dockless bikes.
• The committee will receive the definition of major cultural events.
• Officers will consider alternative ways to present information regarding the KPI of the number of people sleeping rough over the month who are long term entrenched (Rolling).
• The committee will receive information relating to the amount of additional Council Tax collected as a result of the second homes premium.

Q1 Finance Monitor

Lyndsey Gamble, Interim Director of Finance, presented the Q1 Finance Monitor, detailing the council's financial position as of June 2026. A projected General Fund overspend of £6.803 million was noted, primarily driven by high-cost children's social care placements, reduced treasury interest, and the confirmed pay award. The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) was forecasting a deficit of £875,000. Concerns were raised about managing ongoing cost pressures, with specific questions about temporary accommodation acquisitions and the distinction between capital overspends, underspends, and slippage. The committee also inquired about schools in deficit without recovery plans and the actions that could be taken if schools did not engage. Library pressures and their relation to savings from self-service kiosks were discussed, as was hospital discharge activity within adult social care. The committee noted the budget approved in March 2026 and queried the reprofiled late-night levy saving. The impact of recent government funding for rough sleeping on Westminster was also discussed. The committee requested that General Fund balances be included in future reserve reports, that ward names in the school list be updated, and clarification on the implementation of the discretionary secondary school meals saving and Westco's forecast profit.

Actions:

• The committee will receive information regarding the locations of all new and pipeline temporary accommodation acquisitions.
• Future finance monitoring reports will provide a clearer distinction between overspends, underspends, slippage, and accelerated planned spend.
• Officers will consider including General Fund balances in the list of reserves in future finance monitoring reports.
• Officers will update the wards listed in table 3a School Balances.
• The committee will receive an update on the 'Westminster Key Stage 3 Pupil Meal Offer' decision.

Capital Receipts

The committee reviewed the Capital Receipts report, noting the significant scale of capital receipts assumed within the council's capital programme (£881 million over 15 years) and their importance in reducing borrowing requirements. The committee welcomed the proposal for separate annual reporting on forecast capital receipts, which would enhance understanding of changes in assumptions, market conditions, and affordability. The challenges of forecasting receipts linked to residential property sales, particularly in fluctuating market conditions, were discussed, with an emphasis on the need for assumptions to account for marketing strategy, buyer profiles, scheme progression, and wider property market risks. The committee inquired about the management of value risk as schemes progress, and was informed that assumptions are reviewed at business case stages and revisited as schemes develop, including through independent advice and valuation. The respective roles of finance and regeneration teams in developing assumptions and strengthening processes were clarified, with mention of the Capital Review Group and other governance routes. The committee also discussed the process for collecting developer contributions, including Section 106 agreements, Community Infrastructure Levy, and affordable housing contributions, requesting that future annual reporting include information on when significant Section 106 payments are due to provide visibility on upcoming payments, delivery risks, and overdue contributions.

Resolved:

• The committee noted the level of capital receipts assumed within the Council's capital programme and their role in reducing the overall borrowing requirement.
• The committee considered the key risks associated with the timing, value, and delivery of those receipts.
• The committee noted that capital receipt assumptions continue to be subject to robust review through business cases, the Capital Review Group, quarterly monitoring, and annual budget-setting processes.
• The committee agreed the necessity for separate annual reporting on forecast capital receipts, highlighting any changes in assumptions and risk profiles, the implications for borrowing and affordability, which then feeds into the updated capital strategy and Medium-Term Financial Plan.

Action:

• The committee's work programme will include an annual report on Capital Receipts, including information on significant Section 106 payments due and received.

General Procurement Update

Ed Humphreys, Director of Commercial Partnerships, provided an overview of the General Procurement Update. The committee expressed concern regarding the number of non-compliant purchase orders, questioning if this indicated a wider issue. Officers explained that while some cases were due to unavoidable emergencies, improved pipeline planning, stronger controls, and more efficient purchase order practices would help reduce avoidable non-compliance. The committee requested that non-compliant purchase order data be reported as a trend and potentially monitored as a KPI, with officers agreeing to consider how best to present this information in future reports. The audit of the highways contract was discussed, and the committee was informed that learning from this contract could inform wider contract management practices. The committee also inquired about the tracking and challenging of contract inflation across the council, with officers noting that it is a significant cost driver and that departments challenge suppliers and monitor inflationary pressures.

Resolved:

• The committee noted the contents of the report and provided feedback on any changes or additional content it would like to see in future annual reports.

Action:

• Future procurement reports will include trend information on non-compliant purchase orders, and officers will consider whether this should be monitored as a KPI in the quarterly performance reports.

Contract and Supplier Performance Report

The committee received a summary of the Contract and Supplier Performance Report from Ed Humphreys, Director of Commercial Partnerships. The report highlighted the annual contract performance update, the introduction of the Major Contracts Review, and the focus on value for money, supplier resilience, responsible procurement, and contract risk. The committee welcomed the Major Contracts Review, acknowledging its importance to the Council's Fit for the Future programme. Questions were raised about how contract savings would be identified, validated, and profiled, with assurances that work is underway to test and profile savings for inclusion in the final business case. The committee discussed how the council could grow or shape markets with insufficient suppliers, particularly in children's care placements, and was informed about ongoing London-wide efforts to pool resources and explore new models, while acknowledging the challenges of high-cost complex care. Confidence in the early identification and action on failing or poorly managed contracts was questioned, with assurances given about the Contract Management Framework, clearer ownership, improved data, supplier financial monitoring, and the use of data and artificial intelligence. The need for specialist commercial expertise was discussed, with a balance noted between private sector skills and upskilling existing staff within financial constraints. Contingency and exit plans for critical contracts were also queried, with information provided on framework arrangements and targeted work for vulnerable contracts. The committee discussed responsible procurement, emphasizing the need for careful management of resident input to avoid raising unmanageable expectations. The scope of the Major Contracts Review and the potential for reviewing live procurements post-conclusion were discussed. The future of social value in procurement was confirmed, with a new Responsible Procurement Strategy being developed. The committee noted the significant number of recommendations from the Major Contracts Review and the phased implementation timeline.

Resolved:

• The committee noted the contents of the report and the Major Contracts Review and provided feedback on any changes or additional content it would like to see in future iterations of the review.

Action:

• The committee will receive a Cabinet Member Report with details of an awarded contract.