Issue - meetings

To consider a report of the Portfolio Holder for Finance, Commercial and Capital Strategy.

Cabinet noted: -

(a)  the Senior Leadership Team’s forecast of outturn for the Council at the end of Qtr1 including progress of the transformation and tactical savings incorporated into the budget.

(b)  the size of the capital programme for 2021/22 including the slippage from previous years and the work taking place to review this position.

(c)  the opening position for the Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP) refresh and the budget timetable headlines.

(d)  the budget movements (virements) as set out within report.

In setting out the financial management report Q1 2021/22, the Portfolio Holder for Finance, Commercial and Capital outlined the difficult challenges being faced in carrying on with business as usual whilst responding to a world-wide pandemic. At the end of Q1, the council was forecasting a net budget pressure of £8.259m.

He highlighted the pressures faced by services and in particular, by Adult Services & Housing. These included: -

·       There were more people entering Council funded care than predicted, because of the accelerated discharge from the hospital discharge programme.

·       Unrecoverable costs of operating the Hospital Discharge Programme in Dorset and

·       Consequential impact on savings.

Significant work was on-going within all services to address the shortfall but there would remain challenges for the budget due to the continuing impact of Covid-19.

Members discussed the lasting effect of the Covid-19 “tail” on all service budgets, for example the impact of hospital discharges and care home costs. This was also recognised as a national challenge in the field of Adult Services.

Cabinet noted: -

(a)  the Senior Leadership Team’s forecast of outturn for the Council at the end of Qtr1 including progress of the transformation and tactical savings incorporated into the budget.

(b)  the size of the capital programme for 2021/22 including the slippage from previous years and the work taking place to review this position.

(c)  the opening position for the Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP) refresh and the budget timetable headlines.

(d)  the budget movements (virements) as set out within report.