Decisions

RESOLVED

1.     That all recommendations below are referred to the Council meeting of 26 January 2026.

The following recommendations to Council are made:

2.     That the view of the Director of Finance & Resources, that the  estimates included in the Medium-Term Financial Plan 2025/26 to 2029/30 are robust and that the level of financial reserves are adequate at this time, is accepted.

3.     That officers report back to Cabinet and the Services Scrutiny Committee on a quarterly basis regarding the overall position in respect of the Council’s budgets.

General Fund

4.     A Council Tax increase of £6.48 will be levied in respect of a notional Band D property (2.99%).

5.     The Medium-Term Financial Plan in respect of the General Fund as set out in Appendix 1 of this report was approved as the Current Budget 2025/26, as the Agenda Item 4 Original Budget 2026/27, and as the financial projections in respect of 2027/28 to 2029/30.

6.     That the General Fund Capital Programme as set out in Appendix 4 was approved as the Current Budget in respect of 2025/26, and as the Approved Programme for 2026/27 to 2029/30.

7.     That budget under spends be transferred to the Resilience Reserve to provide increased financial resilience for future years of the plan.

Housing Revenue Account (HRA)

8.     That Council set its rent levels for 2026/27 in consideration of the Social Housing Rent Standard increasing rents by 4.8% from 1st April 2026.

9.     The Medium-Term Financial Plan in respect of the Housing Revenue Account as set out in Appendix 3 of this report was approved as the Current Budget in respect of 2025/26, as the Original Budget in respect of 2026/27, and the financial projection in respect of 2027/28 to 2029/30.

10. That the HRA Capital Programme as set out in Appendix 4 was approved as the Current Budget in respect of 2025/26, and as the Approved Programme for 2026/27 to 2029/30.

11. That the Management Fee for undertaking housing services at £13.962m and the Management Fee for undertaking capital works at £1.1m to Rykneld Homes in respect of 2026/27 was approved.

12. That Members noted the requirement to provide Rykneld Homes with a ‘letter of comfort’ to the company’s auditors and granted delegated authority to the Council’s Director of Finance & Resources (S151 Officer) in consultation with the Deputy Leader of the Council to agree the contents of that letter.

This was not a Key Decision and so can be implemented with immediate effect by officers.

RESOLVED

That Cabinet noted the contents of this report and endorsed its inclusion on the agenda for the Council meeting on 26 January 2026 and the next available Environment Scrutiny Committee meeting after that date.

This was not a Key Decision and so can be implemented with immediate effect by officers.

RESOLVED

That the item was deferred.