The Finance and Procurement Select Committee met to consider its work priorities and approach, and to review the financial year 2024/25 revenue and capital outturn positions, as well as the treasury management outturn position. The committee was also scheduled to discuss a member question regarding the council's levels of debt.

Priorities and Approach

The Finance and Procurement Select Committee was scheduled to consider its initial work priorities and approach, as referred to it by the Overview and Scrutiny (OS) Management Committee.

The report pack included a table describing how topics were scrutinised under the previous system and listed considerations for the new committee to take account of when deciding how it would approach these. The work priorities listed in the report pack were:

• Annual Budget and Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS)
• Member/Group amendments to the Council's Annual Budget
• Revenue and capital budget monitoring
• Treasury Management Strategy
• Major contract finances
• Procurement and Commissioning
• Key budget savings/risks

The report pack noted that the new committee was intended to provide greater scope for detailed reviews of key budget areas, potentially collaborating with the relevant select committee when doing so. It also noted the need for the committee to consider up-to-date budget information.

The report pack stated that delivery of the committee's remit would require a good understanding of the council's budget and local government finance, and suggested member training in the following finance topics:

• Designated Schools Grant (DSG).
• Housing Revenue Account (HRA).
• Treasury Management.
• Procurement and commissioning.

The report pack proposed that the committee consider its training needs to ensure effective delivery of its remit, with a training programme to be agreed and implemented in consultation with officers.

The report pack also noted recommendations 2, 4 and 5 of the Financial Year 2024/25 Budget Outturns Rapid Scrutiny Exercise, as endorsed and referred by OS Management Committee, and suggested that these be actioned where appropriate. These recommendations related to:

• The Adult Social Care overspend
• The capital programme process
• The levels of reserves held

Finally, the report pack suggested that the committee consider if further consideration was required of a member question referred to overview and scrutiny by Full Council and discussed by OS Management Committee regarding the council's levels of debt.

Financial Year 2024/25 - Revenue Outturn Position

The Finance and Procurement Select Committee was scheduled to review the Financial Year 2024/25 - Revenue Outturn Position report, which had been considered by Cabinet on 24 June 2025.

The report pack stated that the final position for the year had worsened during the last quarter by £3.104m, which left the final overspend at £4.853m. This movement was mainly due to movements in Adult Services, Family & Children Services, Housing Benefits and the funding the council receives from the Business Rates mechanism. These had been partially off-set by increased income from Treasury Management activity.

The report pack noted that the net overspend for 2024/25 of £4.853m was proposed to be funded by the reprioritisation of existing earmarked reserves, as follows:

• £0.700m from the Pay Award reserve
• £0.713m form the Waste reserve
• £2m from the Transformation reserve
• £1.440m from the Insurance reserve

The report pack also included details of the significant variances within service areas, including:

• Adult Services: The Adult Services budget was overspent by £12.970m at the end of the year, a movement of £6.001m from the quarter 3 forecast. The position included £4.968m of cost mitigation actions through spend reviews and additional income implemented by the service through the year, as well as £2.255m of unachievable savings.
• Public Health: In 2024/25, the Public Health Grant was £19.011m, which was spent on activities such as the Public Health Nursing service, Drug and Alcohol Substance Use services, Sexual Health services, Domestic Abuse services for Wiltshire and a wide range of health improvement services such as health improvement coaches.
• Commissioning: Commissioning was reporting an underspend of £0.479m at the end of the financial year, a favourable movement of £0.216m from the position reported at quarter 3. The majority of this position was due to the service holding staff vacancies during a service restructure.
• Education & Skills: The services in this area fulfil numerous statutory duties with a mixture of local authority and Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) funding. The majority of the local authority funded services are largely aligned with budget.
• Families & Children Services: This service protects, cares for and supports vulnerable children and families with the greatest needs, including children in care, disabled children, and those at risk of harm in a demand driven service area, offset by successful prevention.
• Finance: Finance was reporting a net overspend of £0.376m at outturn having previously reported an underspend at quarter 3 of £0.126m.
• Assets: The Assets service exceeded the budgeted income levels by £0.700m.
• Transformation: No variance was reported for this service as the in-year running cost were funded by flexible use of capital receipts.
• Information Services: Information Services were reporting an underspend of £0.140m at outturn which was an improvement in the position reported at quarter three of £0.074m and was mostly due to timing of projects.
• Highways & Transport: Local Highways final position was as forecast and £0.006m over budget.
• Planning, Economy & Regeneration: Economy & Regeneration were reporting an underspend as a result of salary savings achieved through one-off recharges to grant funded projects and capital schemes.
• Environment: This was largely due to Waste who were reporting an outturn position of £1.740m underspend but also Public Protection who were reporting an outturn position of £0.265m underspend as a result of additional income across Environmental Protection, Pest Control, Food Safety and Trading Standards.
• Leisure Culture & Communities: The underspend in Leisure Culture & Communities was largely due to Leisure Operations which was reporting an overachievement against income of £1.672m.
• Legal & Governance: The service had responded to operational demands for legal services with additional staffing and outsourcing of works where there was not capacity to manage in house.
• Human Resources & Organisational Development: This service was reporting an underspend of £0.117m at outturn, which had not changed since quarter 3, the variance was due to staff vacancies held during the year.
• Corporate Directors & Members: The overspend in Corporate Directors & Members was a result of historic cost pressures, a restructure and maternity leave cover arrangements.
• Financing & Investment, Income & Expenditure: Against budget, there was an underspend in respect of the general fund net position on interest receivable/payable of £3.747m.
• Corporate Costs: Corporate Costs includes some of the corporate contracts for services such as Internal and External Audit and Banking services.
• Corporate Levies: Business Rate income from renewable energy accounts was £0.141m less than expected, resulting in a year end overspend.

The report pack also included details of savings delivery in 2024/25, the capital receipts flexibilities, the collection fund, and the reserves position and forecast.

Financial Year 2024/25 - Capital Programme Outturn

The Finance and Procurement Select Committee was scheduled to review the Financial Year 2024/25 – Capital Programme Outturn report, which was considered by Cabinet on 24 June 2025.

The report pack stated that the final position for the year was a total spend of £177.261m, which was less than forecast at quarter three due mainly to changes in profiling and projects progression during quarter four.

The report pack included a table outlining the quarter four capital programme amendments, as follows:

• Capital Programme Approved by Full Council Quarter Three: £194.435m
• Budgets drawn back from future years to the 2024/25 programme: £12.384m
• Budgets removed from the 2024/25 programme: (£0.032)m
• Additional budgets added to the programme: £2.723m
• Capital Programme 2024/25 revised budget as at 31 March 2025: £209.510m
• Budget removed from the 24/25 programme: (£0.257)m
• Budgets reprogrammed from 2024/2025 into future years: (£31.992)m
• Capital Programme Outturn 2024/25 as at 31 March 2025: £177.261m

The report pack also included details of the capital programme outturn position by scheme, including:

• Corporate Director - People: Total spend for 2024/25 was £30.741m against a final revised budget of £34.590m.
• Corporate Director - Resources: Total spend for 2024/25 was £22.627m against a budget of £38.141m.
• Corporate Director - Place: Total spend for 2024/25 was £89.468m against a budget of £97.044m.
• Housing Revenue Account: Total spend for 2024/25 was £34.425m against a budget of £39.735m.

The report pack also included details of the capital programme 2024/25 funding, and the capital programme adjustments in quarter four.

The report pack recommended that Cabinet approve:

• The additional capital budgets funded by grants, developer contributions, other contributions and earmarked reserves revenue contribution to capital added to the programme of £2.723m.
• The grant income applied for and/or received.
• The budgets brought forward from future years into the 2024/25 programme totalling £12.316m to support the delivery of accelerated projects, in year project overspend, or amendment to in year slippage.
• The movement between capital schemes of £1.399m.
• The budgets reprogrammed from 2024/25 into future years totalling £31.992m.
• The removal of £0.257m in total from the following 2024/25 budgets as schemes are either complete or not progressing:
  • £0.220m from Council House Build Programme Phase 2
  • £0.009m from the Wiltshire Online
  • £0.028m from the Area Board Grants
• The removal of £0.127m in total from the following 2025/26 budgets as schemes are either complete or not progressing:
  • I. £0.068m from Council House Build Programme Phase 2
  • II. £0.059m from Waste (2025/26 capital programme)
• The capital programme end of year spend position of £177.261m for financial year 2024/25.
• The allocation of £0.400m to the 2025/26 capital budget from the Community Infrastructure Levy strategic fund to the Local Highways and Footpath Improvement Groups (LHFIG).
• The updating of the council's Infrastructure List to replace the existing entry 'Wiltshire Museums – archaeological storage' with 'Wiltshire Museum – Devizes Wharf and Assize Courts Project' and the allocation of up to £2.350m from Wiltshire Council's Strategic Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) fund.
• The addition of £0.635m from Earmarked Reserves Revenue Contribution to the Facilities Management Investment Estate capital scheme line for 2025/26 for works to City Hall, Salisbury.

The report pack also recommended that Cabinet note that the final Capital Programme spend sets a Minimum Revenue Provision charge to the 2025/26 revenue budget of £23.138m, which is £0.915m more/less that the budget.

Treasury Management Outturn Position 2024/25

The Finance and Procurement Select Committee was scheduled to review the Treasury Management Outturn Position 2024/25 report.

The report pack stated that the Council had complied with its legislative and regulatory requirements during 2024/25.

The report pack included a table outlining the key actual prudential and treasury indicators detailing the impact of capital expenditure activities during the year, with comparators, as follows:

The report pack also included details of the council's capital expenditure and financing, the council's overall borrowing need, gross borrowing and the CFR, the authorised limit, actual financing costs as a proportion of net revenue stream, and the treasury position as at 31 March 2025.

The report pack stated that the Council only holds fixed rate funding.

The report pack also included details of the investment strategy and control of interest rate risk, the borrowing outturn, debt rescheduling, and the investment outturn.

The report pack recommended that Cabinet:

• Note that the contents of this report are in line with the Treasury Management Strategy 2024/25; and to
• Recommend to Full Council consideration of this report.