This meeting was for Councillors to review the ongoing work of the council and scrutinise the proposals for the 2025-26 budget. The published agenda included a report on the production of the next budget, and the minutes of the last meeting.

Production of the Revenue Budget 2025-26

This report was prepared to fulfil the council's statutory duty to consult on its budget, and was provided to facilitate that consultation. The report outlined the process for developing the budget, the council's current financial position, and the results of engagement with the public on the budget so far.

Current Financial Position

The council's financial position remained challenging as of the Quarter 2 financial report.

As at Quarter 2, the Council is forecasting a net overspend of £28.104m (£20.163m at Quarter 1) against the approved Revenue Budget for 2024-25.

The report goes on to explain that the overspend was driven by demand for adult and children's social care.

Budget Engagement

The council has a statutory duty to consult with the public and other stakeholders on its budget. The report outlined the engagement that had already been undertaken on the budget:

• The council has conducted its annual 'Your Council, Your Voice' survey. The survey asks residents how much they support different money saving measures. The results will be used to inform the budget.

The report also outlined the consultation that will be undertaken now that the proposals for the budget have been made public:

• Cabinet will consider the specific proposals for the budget. These may require more targeted consultation.
• The council has a statutory duty to consult with business ratepayers on the budget.
• The council will consult with the Trade Unions at a Corporate Joint Committee.
• This committee, and other scrutiny committees will be consulted on the budget.

Key Announcements in the Autumn Budget

The report describes the implications of the Autumn Budget for the council. The most significant is likely to be the increase to employers' National Insurance contributions:

The Chancellor announced an increase to employers NICs to 15% (from 13.8%) and a lowering of the threshold from which NIC is payable to £5000. Although it is understood the County Council will be compensated for the impact of this increase on directly employed staff it is unclear how this compensation will be paid. In addition, the impact of this increase on the Council is likely to be significant through the costs of contracts, in particular in social care.

The report also highlighted that the detail of the 'multi-year settlement' from 2026-27 had not yet been announced, meaning there was still a great deal of uncertainty about the council's long-term financial position.

Appendix 2 - Budget Preparation Timetable

This appendix contained a proposed timetable for the development of the budget, from June 2024 to 1 March 2025. It showed that this meeting took place after the Autumn Budget, and before the final budget is recommended by the Cabinet in January 2025.

Minutes 26 September

The agenda included the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee, which took place on 26 September 2024. This is a standard item on the agenda of council meetings so that Councillors can review and approve the record of the last meeting.