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Agenda item

To submit the report of the Head of Finance.

Minutes:

Submitted - the report of the Head of Finance Department which reported on the latest situation on realising the saving schemes.

 

         The Cabinet Member for Finance set out the context and elaborated on the content of the report submitted to Cabinet on 16 January 2018.  He noted that 103 of 122 of the 2017/18 savings schemes had been realised in full or in part and seven were on track to be delivered on time. He highlighted that the slippage in realising the 2017/18 savings schemes included the significant challenge of realising on a number of schemes within the Adults, Health and Well-being Department and the Children and Families Department.

 

         He notified the Committee that the Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Well-being had confirmed to the Cabinet meeting his intention to submit a report on amalgamating the Department's savings scheme to the Cabinet in due course. In relation to the challenge of realising the ‘Improving Benefits by Transforming Children Services' saving scheme within the Children and Families Department, the Cabinet Member for Children was currently addressing the matter. He noted that funding child care services was a matter of concern for many local authorities, but the Cabinet Member was urged to make a decision soon on the way forward with the transformation plan.

 

         The Cabinet Member for Finance noted there was positive progress towards realising the 2015/16 - 2017/18 saving schemes. 

 

         A member referred to the Cabinet's decision on 13 December 2016, that the secondary schools proportion of savings within the schools saving scheme would be bridged by the Council for two years. He asked how sustainable this was. In response, the Head of Finance Department noted that the Council would be facing difficult decisions by this time next year, the next item on the agenda noted that it was recommended for the Cabinet to recommend to the Full Council that that the budget for 2018/19 should be balanced by increasing Council Tax and achieving the planned savings, with no further savings required. Furthermore, he explained that Welsh Government was transferring grants such as the Schools Improvement Grant into the general settlement the Council received from the Government, however there was no increase in the settlement. Therefore, reducing specific grants meant a significant reduction in school funding, however there would be no cuts in Gwynedd in the 2018/19 financial year.

 

         In response to an observation by a member regarding which plan within the Highways and Municipal Department was continuing to cause concern, the Head of Finance Department noted that the reference was to the 'Reduction in the Frequency of Municipal Grass Cutting and Collection' scheme and that a report would be submitted to the Communities Scrutiny Committee in relation to the scheme. In response to a follow-up question, the Head of Finance Department noted that the Highways and Municipal Department had carried out grass cuts more often that what had been planned following requests from Councillors.

 

         RESOLVED to note the situation and the relevant risks in the context of the savings overview.

 

 

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