Council and democracy

Decision details

Revenue Budget Monitoring - Quarter 3 December 2017 (Decision 0110467)

Decision Maker: Cabinet

Decision status: For Determination

Is Key decision?: Yes

Is subject to call in?: Yes

Purpose:

To note the Councils forecast financial position for 2017/18.

Decisions:

The Leader notified Members the report outlined the underspends and overspends in the various directorates across the Council as of 31 December 2017.

 

Councillor Gledhill stated that he had spoken with the Section 151 Officer , who had assured him that by the end of the year the overspend as reported in December 2017 as £223,000 would be less than zero; the council would again finish the current year having underspent. He continued to explain this was partially due to income from investments, in addition to departments continuing to make savings and generate income.

 

The Leader then touched on the two services which were currently at an overspend.  Firstly he spoke of Children’s Services, reminding Cabinet that in previous years the department had overspent between £3-6Million. It was discussed how a lot had been done over the past two years, which would assist in the reduction of the overspend of the service.

 

Councillor Gledhill was pleased to report that previously Thurrock had 4 to 5 times the number of unaccompanied asylum seeker children in their care; this was now reduced from 103 to 31 children by the end of the year, which was closer to the council’s threshold of 28.

 

The Leader secondly touched on the pressures within the Environment directorate, highlighting the largest pressure was the rise in the cost of waste disposal.

 

Councillor Watkins commented that the new recycling message had been completed and included with resident’s council tax letters. The message had also been included on the new waste vehicles as signage. He continued to advise Cabinet that the new permits for the Linford Refuse site were also in place and information had been included within residents Council Tax letters. 

 

Councillor Gledhill congratulated those departments who had come in under budget, thereby assisting those departments with unavoidable overspends.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That Cabinet noted the forecast outturn position for 2017/18 and that further mitigation is required to outturn within the agreed budget envelope.

 

Reason for Decision – as stated in the report

This decision is subject to call-in

Report author: Sean Clark (Corporate Director Resources and Place Delivery)

Publication date: 19/03/2018

Date of decision: 14/03/2018

Decided at meeting: 14/03/2018 - Cabinet

Effective from: 27/03/2018

Accompanying Documents: