Agenda item

Financial Performance Report - Q4 2025/26

Purpose

This report sets out the full year budget monitoring position for the 2025/26 financial year.

Accountable Member

Councillor Patrick Coleman, Cabinet Member for Finance

Report Author

Michelle Burge, Chief Accountant and Deputy Section 151 Officer

**Report to follow**

Minutes:

The purpose of the report was to set out the full year budget monitoring position for the 2025/26 financial year.

The report was introduced by Councillor Patrick Coleman the Cabinet Member for Finance, and David Stanley, Chief Finance Officerwho highlighted the following points:

· The outturn financial position was positive, increasing the surplus by £206,000 compared to Q3 to a total revenue surplus of £251,000.

· Key drivers included higher-than-expected car park income (with £165,000 earmarked for new ticket machines) and strong planning fee income (£710,000 above budget, with full provision set aside due to appeal risk).

· The Ubico contract, which ended the year £166,000 over budget, prompted further work on improved forecasting and cost mitigation.

In questioning and discussion, the following points were noted:

The Ubico contract budget within the Medium-Term Financial Strategy had been set using inflation assumptions on fuel, pay awards and other costs, and would increase across future years accordingly.

· Work was ongoing with Ubico to improve monthly forecasting and monitoring of fuel usage and costs.

· Vacancy management required all posts to be approved before filling, with senior review of business cases, meaning only essential roles were recruited to while some vacancies were held or removed, generating budget savings and a positive financial variance. Resource allocation remains a political decision. Financial monitoring would identify whether the budget was underspent or overspent, with any available surplus requiring decision by the administration on whether and how it should be allocated in line with their priorities.

· Additional postage costs from the “LIFT” project were not fully covered by the original project budget, as it related to subsequent processing by the revenues and benefits team.

· Under the Ubico partnership arrangement, the Council retained financial risk for Ubico costs, with limited ability to apply financial penalties.

Increased car parking income was due to both higher usage and sustained visitor numbers, with around a 20% rise in car park activity alongside changes in stay patterns.

· The Publica Phase 2 had been estimated to cost £300,000 for service transfer plus a similar amount for redundancy. The actual staffing costs following transfer in July 2025 were lower than expected.

· The £2m LGR reserve was acknowledged as a prudent financial measure to manage the costs of Local Government Reorganisation.

· The Council’s risk register identified ongoing capacity issues within planning enforcement.

Planning decisions were based solely on planning policy and not on financial considerations. Adequate resources would be provided to deliver key priorities, including the Local Plan, but only after reviewing whether service improvements or different ways of working could address pressures before committing additional funding.
Electric vehicle charging points generated a surplus because the Council purchased electricity at a lower cost than it charged users, with minimal maintenance costs incurred to date.
Occupancy data was available for individual car parks, including usage patterns, ticket sales and space availability.

Recommendations to Cabinet

1. Ubico Contract: To inform the Cabinet of concerns around the Ubico contract and support more rigorous monitoring and forecasting of costs following delayed notification of 2025-26 cost pressures.

2. LGR Reserve Fund: To commend the Council on putting aside reasonable funds into an LGR reserve for future costs relating to local government reorganisation.

Supporting documents:

Agenda item

Financial Performance Report - Q4 2025/26

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