Issue - meetings

Revenue Budget 2020/21 & Medium Term Financial Plan (2021/22 to 2024/25)

Meeting: 17/02/2020 - Cabinet (Item 90)

90 Council Budget 2020/21 & Medium Term Financial Plan (2021/22 to 2024/25) pdf icon PDF 215 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A.  Councillor Janette Williamson introduced a report which provided an update on the Budget 2020/21 and the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) previously reported to Cabinet on 23 December 2019. It set out the background and the key elements contributing to the preparation of the Budget for 2020/21 and set out recommendations on the budget and council tax for the Council.

 

The Council continued to face financial constraints and pressures. The medium term financial planning period to 2024/25 was expected to contain further grant funding reductions and increasing financial pressures. The report set out how the Council would balance the budget for 2020/21 and updated the MTFP for the period to 2024/25.

 

The Cabinet had to recommend a 2020/21 Budget proposal to the Council on 2 March 2020. This included a recommendation on the Wirral Council element of the Council Tax to be applicable for the 2020/21 financial year.

 

The Council had to agree a Budget and set the levels of Council Tax for 2020/21 by 10 March 2020. The Council tax increase was proposed to be 3.99% (2% Adult Care precept and a 1.99% increase in Council tax). There was growing demand placed on adults’ and children’s care budgets with current pressures of £13m, although the 2% precept would only bring in an additional £2.85m. Nearly £900,000 was proposed for the budget for an automatic reduction in Council tax for the 9,000 poorest households in the borough. She thanked all of her Cabinet colleagues and officers, particularly in the finance team, for all their work on this proposed budget.

 

Members of the Cabinet reiterated the rising demands and pressures being placed on the Council whilst having to respond to cuts in funding from central Government.

 

B.  Councillor Tom Usher introduced a report which set out the Schools Budget for 2020/21 having previously been considered by the Schools Forum at their meetings on 6 November, 2019 and 15 January, 2020.

 

The Schools Budget covered education provision for all Wirral Pupils aged up to 18 in Early Years, Primary, Secondary and academy schools and for some pupils up to the age of 25 in Special Schools and High Needs providers.

 

Most budgets were delegated to schools with some central provision for support services including school admissions and High Needs.

 

The report proposed several changes to the local funding formula for Schools to allow implementation of the National Funding Formula, following the transition steps taken in 2019/20. There were also changes proposed to High Needs. 

 

The Schools Budget provided resources to support all children and young people pledges, and the proposals within the report resulted in an in-year surplus of £643,900 on the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) budget, which it was proposed to transfer to the DSG reserve to partially offset the deficit position expected at the end of 2019/20.

 

Councillor Usher referred to the Government’s extra 8 pence per pupil, under the changes to the funding formula. He referred to an article published in the Times Education Supplement in 2018, by  ...  view the full minutes text for item 90