URL: https://northumberland.moderngov.co.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=370

Decision Maker: Cabinet

Outcome: Recommendations Approved

Is Key Decision?: Yes

Is Callable In?: Yes

Purpose: The report is to ensure that cabinet is infomed of the provisional out-turn for the Council against the budget for 2024-25

Content: RESOLVED that:-   The following be approved:   (a)      the creation of a new earmarked reserve to carry forward the unspent Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) funding for Plan for Neighbourhoods. The Council will receive funding over a ten-year period to bring communities together, improve living standards and give people in places more of a stake in their future. It is proposed that the transfer of the final value and utilisation of this reserve is delegated to the Executive Director of Place and Regeneration and the Executive Director of Transformation and Resources;   (b)      the drawdown of £0.879 million from the Homes for Ukraine Scheme earmarked reserves, which has been used to support Ukrainian families to rebuild their lives and fully integrate into local communities;   (c)      the drawdown of £1.159 million from the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) reserve to offset the in-year deficit of £8.868 million during 2024-25. The final deficit on the grant will follow the guidance issued by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities that a deficit arising on the DSG must be excluded from Council reserves and held in a ring-fenced unusable reserve;   (d)      any balance remaining upon finalisation of the Statement of Accounts will be transferred to/from the Council’s Strategic Management Reserve.   The following be noted:   (e)      the projected General Fund underspend of £0.079 million and the assumptions outlined in the report;   (f)       that this forecast provisional outturn is based on the figures as at the end of February and is subject to change;   (g)      that a modification gain of £3.066 million will be recognised in 2024-25 following restructuring of £44.100 million of the Council’s long-term debt. The restructure involves changing the existing maturity loans to a 20-year Equal Instalments of Principal (EIP) loan and will generate a net interest saving to the Council of £1.111 million over the next three financial years. The £3.066 million modification gain will be transferred to the Strategic Management Reserve in 2024-25 and released to the General Fund as the modification gain unwinds over the life of the loan;   (h)      the net re-profiling to the Capital Programme of £62.706 million from 2024-25 to 2025-26 to reflect expenditure levels during the financial year. Final reprofiling will be requested in the Final Outturn report to Cabinet;   (i)       the supplementary estimates at Appendix A and the required changes to the budgets; (j)       the delivery of the approved savings at Appendix B;   (k)      the use of the contingency shown at Appendix L;   (l)       the schedule of movement in the Council’s reserves shown at Appendix M;   (m)     the virements requested by services within delegated limits as shown in Appendix N; and   (n)      the details of capital project reprofiling shown at Appendix O.

Date of Decision: June 10, 2025