This report sets out the provisional revenue and capital outturn positions for the Council’s General Fund and Housing Revenue Account as at the end of Quarter 2 2024/25 as well as performance against the measures of success published in the Council’s Corporate Plan.

The Committee considered a report setting out the projected revenue and capital outturn positions for 2024/25 for the General Fund and the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) as at the end of Quarter 2 and the performance against the measures of success set out in the Council’s Corporate Plan.  The following documents were attached to the report:

• Summary of the General Fund Budget and Forecast 2024/25
• Recovery Plan Quarter 2
• Savings Tracker Quarter 2
• General Fund Capital Programme
• Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Capital Programme
• Corporate Plan Performance Measures Quarter 2
• Corporate Plan Projects Quarter 2
• Debt Write-offs (exempt information)

The report explained that the overall forecast adverse net variance as at the end of Quarter 2 was £9.620m, which was an increase of £4.633m from Quarter 1.  The movement almost entirely related to an increase in the variance forecast by Brighter Futures for Children where the adverse net variance had increased by £3.150m, and a newly reported adverse net variance of £1.380m within Adult Social Care Operations.  The report summarised the current main financial pressures in the areas of Adult Social Care Operations, Homelessness, Planning, Transport & Public Protection, Children’s Social Care and Corporate Budgets. 

At Quarter 1 the Recovery Plan had initially set out a target of deliverable mitigations totalling £8.081m, a further £0.499m of recently approved actions had been included as at Quarter 2, bringing the total target Recovery Plan to £8.580m.  As at Quarter 2, the forecast delivery against this total was £8.495m.  With regards to savings included in the current year’s budget, the Quarter 2 forecast was that £0.044m (1%) of savings had been delivered already, £4.114m (55%) of savings were on track to be delivered by March 2025, £0.845m (11%) of savings were currently categorised as non-deliverable (red) and £2.435m (33%) categorised as at risk of delivery (amber).  There was no Corporate Contingency to mitigate against undelivered savings as it had been removed as part of the 2024/25 budget setting process, and it was therefore critical that all savings were delivered. The Savings Tracker listing progress against each individual saving was attached to the report at Appendix 3.

The General Fund Capital Programme was set out in Appendix 4, and the report explained that the original 2024/25 budget of £95.232m had been revised to £96.905m following approved adjustments as part of the subsequent Performance and Monitoring reports reported to the Committee.  Approval was requested for further adjustments, summarised in the report and set out in detail in Appendix 4, that would result in a revised approved budget of £72.760m for 2024/25.  Against this revised budget the current forecast was a positive net variance of £0.451m, which incorporated a £0.453m positive variance for the Delivery Fund slightly offset by a £0.002m adverse variance on the Hexagon replacement of PA System scheme.

The report explained that the approved HRA budget had assumed a drawdown from HRA reserves of £2.582m. At Quarter 2, the forecast revenue outturn position on the HRA was an adverse net variance to budget of £0.039m, and therefore a drawdown from the HRA Reserve was forecast of £2.621m rather than the originally budgeted £2.582m drawdown from reserves.  The HRA Capital Programme, which was set out at Appendix 5, had originally had a budget of £47.760m which had since been revised to £45.284m following approved adjustments as part of the Performance and Monitoring reports reported to the Committee.  The report sought approval for further adjustments, set out in detail in Appendix 5, that would result in a revised budget of £27.335m for 2024/25.  At Quarter 2, the HRA Capital Programme was forecast to spend to budget against the proposed revised budget of £27.335m.

The report also set out performance against the measures of success published in the Council’s Corporate Plan.  Of the 23 Corporate Plan Performance Measures monitored monthly or quarterly, 26% were currently at or above target (green), 26% were within 30% of the target (amber) and 44% were 10% or more off target (red).  Of the 46 Corporate Plan Projects, 68% were either on track (green) or complete (blue).  The full list of Performance Measures was attached to the report at Appendix 6 and Projects at Appendix 7.

Resolved –

            (1)       That the following be noted:

a)    The forecast General Fund revenue outturn position for Quarter 2 of an adverse net variance of £9.620m as set out in Appendix 1;

b)   The revised forecast delivery of £8.495m against the revised Recovery Plan target of £8.580m as set out in Section 4 and in detail in Appendix 2;

c)    That £0.044m (1%) of savings had been delivered (blue), £4.144m (55%) of savings were on track to be delivered (green) by March 2025, £0.845m (11%) of savings were currently categorised as non-deliverable (red) and £2.435m (33%) categorised as at risk of delivery (amber), as set out in Appendix 3;

d)   The forecast positive net variance of £0.451m against the proposed revised General Fund Capital Programme budget of £72.760m, as set out in Appendix 4;

e)    The total of £3.144m Delivery Fund available for 2024/25 (inclusive of 2023/24 approved carry forwards) and the allocation of £3.098m to approved schemes at Quarter 2;

f)     The projected adverse net variance of £0.039m for the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) as at the end of Quarter 2, which resulted in a forecast drawdown from HRA reserves of £2.621m rather than the originally budgeted £2.582m;

g)   That the HRA Capital Programme was forecasting to spend to budget against the proposed revised budget of £27.335m (Appendix 5);

h)   The performance achieved against the Corporate Plan success measures as set out in Section 13 of this report and Appendices 6 and 7;

(2)       That the write-off of debts be approved, as set out in Section 7 and Appendix 8 relating to:

a)       Non-Domestic Rates - £569,333.49;

b)      Housing Benefit Overpayments - £230,692.48;

c)       Adult Social Care - £56,957.01;

(3)       That the proposed amendments to the General Fund Capital Programme (as set out in Section 9 of this report and Appendix 4), which would result in a revised Capital Programme budget of £72.760m for 2024/25, £70.979m for 2025/26 and £21.435m for 2026/27, be approved;

(4)       That Scheme and spend approval be given for the fully grant funded Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) grant to be passported to  Reading Transport Limited (RTL) scheme (as set out in Section 9 of the report and Appendix 4);

(5)       That Scheme and spend approval be given for the fully grant funded Active Travel Trance 4 extension scheme (as set out in Section 9 of the report and Appendix 4);

(6)       That Scheme and spend approval be given for the Provision of the additional Children’s Homes capital scheme (as set out in Section 9 of this report and Appendix 4) noting that the scheme had been brought forward to Committee for approval due to the urgent nature of the spend, which would enable revenue savings to be achieved;

(7)       That Spend approval be given for the Maintenance & Enhancement of Council Properties scheme within the Capital Programme as set out in Section 9;

(8)       That the proposed amendments to the HRA Capital Programme (as set out in Section 12 of the report and Appendix 5), which would result in a revised Capital Programme budget of £27.335m for 2024/25, £60.172m for 2025/26 and £16.687m for 2026/27, be approved.