The Council’s Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) sets out the financial implications of the Council’s Corporate Plan and how this can be funded over the period of five years. Each year, the Council is required by law to approve a balanced budget, where gross expenditure is matched by available resources. The MTFS sets out the guiding principles and considerations to deliver a balanced budget.

The report provides the Committee with the proposed MTFS 2022/23 to 2026/27, which provides a robust, consistent, and sustainable approach to establishing and maintaining a stable and prudent financial basis on which the Council’s services are to be delivered.

The MTFS is one of the key strategies of the Council and the five-year strategy sets out the Council’s commitment to providing services that meet the needs of people locally and that represent good value for money.

The MTFS identifies a structural deficit for the five-year period covered. Upon the budget balancing for 2022/23 this structural deficit is removed based on latest estimates.

Contained within the MTFS are indicative figures for financial years 2022/23 to 2026/27; these figures will change in line with a number of factors, including confirmation of the government’s forthcoming funding settlement for 2022/23 (which is expected in December), which in turn will inform the budget proposals made by Policy and Resources Committee for consideration by full Council in February 2022.