Decision details

Having considered an officer report, and presentation by the Cabinet

Member for Resources, Councillor Kevin Bonavia, and the Chair of the

Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Alan Hall, the Mayor agreed

that:

 

(1) note be taken that no comments were offered by the Public Accounts

Select Committee of 25 January 2017.

 

(2) having considered the views of those consulted on the budget, and subject

to consideration of the outcome of consultation with business ratepayers, and

subject to proper process and consultation, as required, the Mayor:

           

Capital Programme

 

(3) Council be asked to note the 2016/17 Quarter 3 Capital Programme

monitoring position and the Capital Programme potential future schemes and

resources as set out in section 5;

 

(4) Council be recommended to approve the 2017/18 to 2020/21 Capital

Programme of £336.6m, as set out in section 5 and at Appendices W1 and

W2;

 

(5) Council be recommended to write-off debt totalling £282,759.34 related to

Building Control works at the former Hatcham Temple Grove School as at

Appendix W3;

 

Housing Revenue Account

 

(6) Council be asked to note the consultation report on service charges to

tenants’ and leaseholders in the Brockley area, presented to area panel

members on 13 December 2016, as at Appendix X2;

 

(7) Council be asked to note the consultation report on service charges to

tenants’ and leaseholders and the Lewisham Homes budget strategy

presented to area panel members on 15 December 2016, as at Appendix X3;

 

(8) Council be asked to set a decrease in dwelling rents of 1.0% (an average

of £0.97 per week) – as per the requirements from government as presented

in section 6;

 

(9) Council be recommended to set a decrease in the hostels accommodation

charge by 1.0% (or £0.35 per week), in accordance with Government

requirements;

 

(10) the following average weekly increases/decreases be approved for

dwellings for:

 

service charges to non-Lewisham Homes managed dwellings (Brockley);

•           caretaking                 3.00% (£0.13)

•           grounds                     3.00% (£0.06)

•           communal lighting   3.00% (£0.02)

•           bulk waste collection3.00% (£0.04)

•           window cleaning     3.00% (£0.01)

•           tenants’ levy             no change

 

service charges to Lewisham Homes managed dwellings:

•           caretaking                 1.99% (£0.12)

•           grounds                     0.69% (£0.01)

•           window cleaning     no change

•           communal lighting   3.33% (£0.04)

•           block pest control     1.88% (£0.03)

•           waste collection       -4.17% (-£0.02)

•           heating & hot waterno change

•           tenants’ levy             no change

•           bulk waste disposal-5.00% (-£0.04)

•           sheltered housing   1.00% (£0.24)

 

(11)     the following average weekly percentage changes for hostels and

shared temporary units be approved for;

•           service charges (hostels) – caretaking etc.; 2.00% (£1.42)

•           energy cost increases for heat, light & power; 8.93% (£0.49)

•           water charges increase; 5.56% (£0.01)

 

(12) an increase in garage rents be approved by Retail Price Inflation (RPI) of

2.00% (£0.23 per week) for Brockley residents and 2.00% (£0.23 per week)

for Lewisham Homes residents;

 

(13) Council be asked to note that the budgeted expenditure for the Housing

Revenue Account (HRA) for 2017/18 is £159.8m which includes the capital

and new build programmes;

 

(14) Council be asked to endorse the HRA budget strategy savings proposals

in order to achieve a balanced budget in 2017/18, as attached at Appendix

X1;

 

Dedicated Schools Grant and Pupil Premium

 

(15) Council be asked to agree, subject to final confirmation of the allocation,

that the provisional Dedicated Schools Grant allocation of £290.7m be the

Schools’ Budget for 2017/18 and notes and asks Council to:

 

•           note the proposed fair funding formula consultation on both the schools

            block and high needs block

•           note the position on the early years block

•           note the position on the schools block

•           agree that a PFI factor should be introduced to the schools funding

            formula for Lewisham.

•           note the latest financial position in schools

•           note the likely future cost pressures on schools

•           note the estimated pupil premium of £16.0m

•           note the position on the Education Services Grant

 

General Fund Revenue Budget

 

(16) Council be asked to note the projected overall variance against the

agreed 2016/17 revenue budget of £11.6m as set out in section 8 of this

report and that any year-end overspend will have to be met from reserves;

 

(17) Council be asked to agree officers’ recommendation to opt in to the

Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) process to appoint an auditor for

the 2018/19 financial year;

 

(18) Council be asked to endorse the previously approved revenue budget

savings of £16.2m for 2017/18 and budget savings proposals of £6m as per

the Mayor and Cabinet meeting of the 28 September 2016, as set out in

section 8 and summarised in Appendix Y1 and Y2;

 

(19) Council be asked to agree the transfer of £5.0m in 2017/18 from the New

Homes Bonus reserve to the General Fund for one year to meet funding

shortfalls and that the position be reviewed again for 2018/19;

 

(20) Council be asked to agree the use of £0.027m reserves to meet the

budget gap in 2017/18;

 

(21) Council be asked to agree the remaining £2.75m of unallocated

corporate risk and pressures monies in 2016/17 be transferred to Adult Social

Care budgets from 2017/18;

 

(22) Council be asked to agree to a saving of £1.0m per year for three years

from 2017/18 (£3m in total) from the reduction of the corporate risks and

pressures budget to £6.5m;

 

(23) Council be asked to note that £0.75m of the 2016/17 risk and pressures

monies allocated to Directorate budgets is no longer required and is to be

recovered corporately and re-allocated in 2017/18, in addition to the £6.5m

above;

 

(24) Council be asked to agree the allocation of £5.12m in 2017/18 to fund

quantified budget pressures from the £7.25m (£6.5m plus £0.75m) set aside

for corporate risks and pressures;

 

(25) Council be asked to agree to create a fund in respect of the identified but

as yet un-quantified revenue budget risks in the sum of £2.13m in 2017/18

(the balance of budget for corporate risks and pressures), allowing the

Executive Director for Resources & Regeneration to hold these resources

corporately in case these pressures emerge during the year, and authorises

the Executive Director for Resources and Regeneration to allocate these

funds to meet such pressures when satisfied that those pressures cannot be

contained within the Directorates’ cash limit;

 

(26) Council be recommended to agree that a General Fund Budget

Requirement of £232.746m for 2017/18 be approved, based on a 4.99%

increase in Lewisham’s Council Tax element. This will result in a Band D

equivalent Council Tax level of £1,157.68 for Lewisham’s services and

£1,437.70 overall. This represents an overall increase in Council Tax for

2017/18 of 4.28% and is subject to the GLA precept for 2017/18 being

increased by £4.02 (i.e. 1.5%) from £276.00 to £280.02, in line with the GLA’s

draft proposal;

 

(27) Council be asked to note the Council Tax Ready Reckoner which for

illustrative purposes sets out the Band D equivalent Council Tax at various

levels of increase, as explained in section 8 and set out in more detail in

Appendix Y3;

 

(28) the Executive Director for Resources & Regeneration be asked to issue

cash limits to all Directorates once the 2017/18 Revenue Budget is agreed;

 

(29) the Chief Financial Officer’s Section 25 Statement be presented in the

Budget Update Report on the 15 February 2017 for approval;

 

(30) Council be asked to agree the draft statutory calculations for 2017/18 as

set out at Appendix Y5;

 

(31) Council be asked to note the prospects for the revenue budget for

2018/19 and future years as set out in section 9;

 

(32)3 officers continue to develop firm proposals and bring them forward as

soon as possible as part of the Lewisham Future Programme to help meet the

future forecast budget shortfalls;

 

(33) Council be asked to agree the use of up to £10.6m of once off corporate

resources for transformation projects as set out in the report and at Appendix

Y7 (£2.2m in 2016/17 and £8.4m in 2017/18 and future years).

 

            Other Grants (within the General Fund)

 

(34) Council be asked to note the adjustments to and impact of various

specific grants for 2017/18 on the General Fund as set out in section 8;

 

            Treasury Management Strategy

 

(35) Council be recommended to approve the prudential indicators and

treasury limits, as set out in section 10 of this report;

 

(36) Council be recommended to approves the 2017/18 treasury strategy,

including the authority to undertake debt restructuring and to invest for longer

than one year in non-specified property investments (namely, pooled property

funds and AAA Residential Mortgage Backed Securities), along with the

investment strategy and the credit worthiness policy as set out at Appendix

Z3;

 

(37) Council be recommended to approve the revised Minimum Revenue

Provision (MRP) policy which confirms the asset life approach adopted in

2016/17 and adds an option to waive the MRP charge on borrowing where

sufficient collateral and security is held against the relevant borrowing, as set

out in section 10;

 

(38) Council be recommended to agree to delegate to the Executive Director

for Resources & Regeneration authority during 2017/18 to make amendments

to borrowing and investment limits provided they are consistent with the

strategy and there is no change to the Council’s authorised limit for borrowing;

 

(39) Council be recommended to approve the credit and counterparty risk

management criteria, as set out at Appendix Z3, the proposed countries for

investment at Appendix Z4, and that it formally delegates responsibility for

managing transactions with those institutions which meet the criteria to the

Executive Director for Resources & Regeneration; and

 

(40) Council be recommended to approve a minimum sovereign rating of AA-.