Agenda item

Budget 2019/20: Service Dashboard and Service Change Impact Assessments (SCIAs)

Minutes:

The Chief Finance Officer presented a report, which explained that this was the second stage of the budget process and ensured that all Members of the Advisory Committees had a role to play in the governance of the Council and the budget decision making process. He explained that since the current financial strategy was introduced in 2011/12, over £7 million of savings had been agreed.

 

To continue to have a balanced budget position and remain financially self-sufficient, a net savings requirement of £100,000 per annum was included in the budget. The Chief Finance Officer also advised Members that other pressures may come out later in the budget process such as when the Local Government Finance Settlement was announced in December. These may result in additional savings being required.

One growth item had been proposed. Members were advised that the impact of £40,000 for Land Charges Searches showed that parts of the budgeted search income was no longer achievable as some requests were passed onto Kent County Council (KCC) to answer as they own the relevant datasets. Members were reminded the function operates on a cost recovery basis. Members expressed concern at the costs of the KCC part of the process not being recovered, which seemed at odds with the principle of running a costs recovery service. Members felt that the KCC part of the process should also be recovered from the end user and were not prepared to support the recommendation without more information, which the Chief Officer Corporate Services agreed to forward to Members of the Advisory Committee.

 

Members discussed possible growth items including investigating the feasibility of a shared service for the Legal team. A Member advised that Ashford Borough Council saved costs on legal fees by having a magistrate willing to take applications over the telephone, e.g. for injunctions, thus saving on costings applicable at court. Members also considered whether the £19,000 Equalities Legislation budget was still needed when the principle of complying witht the Equalities Act 2010 was well embedded in the Council and if there was no proposal to fill the vacant post, there was no requirement to keep the budget.

 

Members also expressed an interest in looking at associated costs of agenda printing, and the delivery and the posting of documentation from the Council. Finally, Members mentioned again the possibility of the Council becoming paperless.

 

Public Sector Equality Duty

Members noted that consideration had been given to impacts under the Public Sector Equality Duty.

 

Resolved: That it be recommended to Cabinet that

 

a)    the Portfolio Holder would advise Cabinet of the views of the Advisory Committee Members on the growth proposal identified in Appendix D (SCIA01, which would be supplied outside of the meeting after the Chief Officer Corporate Services had circulated further information and

 

 

b)   the following savings suggestions be discussed further

·         a shared service for the Legal team

·         a full time magistrate on call to support the Legal team

·         removal of the Equalities Legislation budget

·         review of the associated costs of agenda printing, delivery and Member postal arrangements.  

 

Supporting documents:

 

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