AGENDA ITEM NO. 16

REPORT TO:
REPORT NO:
DATE:
LEAD MEMBER:
LEAD OFFICER:
CONTACT OFFICER:
SUBJECT:
WARD: / Executive Board
CFPO/05/08
22 January 2008
Councillor Alun Jenkins
(Finance & Performance)
Chief Finance & Performance Officer
Cerith John (Tel: 292710)
Budget Monitoring & Control 2007/08
N/A

PURPOSE OF THE REPORT

To inform members of the Council’s revenue budgetary position following the third quarter of the 2007/08 financial year.

INFORMATION

1.  This report which is the second report to the Executive Board for the current financial year covers the period from 1 April to 31 December 2007.

Budgetary Position - Services

2.  Information has been received from all chief officers. The following service is currently projecting a net overspend of £300k at year end:

i)  Safeguarding & Support

An overspend of £592k is projected in Out of County Social Care placements. This has arisen due to significant new demands being made on the service. There are also additional costs from restructuring of the previous Ymlaen service into separate KS3 and KS4 provisions of £20k and increased fees in civil proceedings of £100k. Savings in staff vacancy management of £312k have already been identified and further actions will be taken by the department in the next few months to reduce the overspend to £300k.

a.  As far as other services are concerned, members should note that pressures are anticipated but measures have been identified to bring expenditure in line with the cash limited budget:

i)  Adult Social Care

High pressure areas are in Learning Disabilities (£440k overspend) and Older people domiciliary care (£200k overspend). Offsetting these and other smaller overspends is underspends in Direct services and vacancy savings in Mental Health and Planning and Commissioning leaving a net overspend of £39k. The level of overspend has continued to reduce because of actions taken by managers through vacancy control and by looking at ways of increasing income generation and joint funding from Health.

ii)  Legal and Democratic Services

It is projected that the budget will be overspent by £123k due to increased expenditure for the Coroner service of £26k, backdated rent increase for Ty Dewi Sant of £23k and due to a shortfall in land charges income of £74k. Other additional income and vacancy management savings of £79k have already been identified to offset these overspends.

b.  The following services are currently projecting savings but the Chief Officers have requested that these are carried forward.

i)  Information Systems

As you are aware £225k was allocated to the One Stop Shop in the 2007/08 budget subject to a report to the Executive Board detailing the proposals. This report was approved in November 2007 (CISO/06/07) but as the budget will not be spent in the current financial year the Chief Information Systems Officer has requested that the £225k is carried forward as a service reserve towards the future costs of this facility.

ii)  Planning

It is estimated that the planning budget will be underspent by £100k as a result of increased planning control fee income. The Chief Planning Officer has requested that £100k is carried forward as a service reserve towards the cost of future public inquiries into planning matters. Several major inquiries are expected to take place in future years.

iii)  Transportation and Asset Management

It is anticipated that the statutory school and college transport budget will be underspent by £60k. This is due to lower than anticipated increases in the February 2007 tender round, good housekeeping and a rationalisation of transport to St Christophers SEN School during the Summer of 2007. However the expenditure on home to school transport will increase for the 2008/9 financial year, due to more academic days than in previous years. The extra cost of providing the service for these additional days in 2008/9 will not be fully met by the normal annual increase to the budget, as this is only sufficient to cater for annual tender increases and cost of living awards to existing operators. The carry-over of the £60k will assist the Transportation & Asset Management Department in managing the effect of the additional school days.

3.  In addition to the budget review of services, the Corporate and Central expenditure budgets have also been scrutinised. Due to the fact that the pay award was not paid until December and due to a delay in the implementation of the new pay line surplus cash has been available for investment and together with increased interest rates has resulted in a projected increase in investment income of £1.3m. However, members will recall that at a meeting of the Board on 16 October 2007 (CFPO/77/07) it was agreed to create a Secondary Schools Building reserve of £1m to part fund the re-modelling works at three secondary schools leaving a net saving of £300k.

4.  The forecast at this stage is a break even position.

RECOMMENDATION

That the report be noted.

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